(1) Ascari would live well into his 80s, became a beloved Grand Prix commentator for RAI Italia much like Murray Walker in OTL

(2) Sterling Moss is one of only three men who has won the Formula 1 Championship and the Indianapolis 500 in the same year. Joining Jim Clark (’65) and A.J. Foyt (’77). Moss, at age 92, is still alive and well…and get still racing! Moss won a round in the Thermex Historic Touring Car Championship in the ‘11 and had 4 other podium finishes. He plans to contest the year and he’s will test to get a competition license for the Spa and Silverstone 24-hour events.

(3) Dan Gurney was the first American World Champion as a driver ('62) and the first American World Champion as a team principal and constructor ('67). The Gurney name is legendary not only in Motorsport, but in the automotive industry. After retiring from active competition in 1971, Gurney's All-American Racers became an engineering consulting firm and a technology investment firm that morphed into the powerful multibillion-dollar Gurney Group by 1981. Gurney is best known in business for saving the British car industry with his acquisitions of British Motor Corporation in 1982, and today the Gurney Austin Rover Motors is well-known for it's line of exciting performance passenger cars that are also very practical and forward thinking. Gurney Austin Rover is also hotly competitive in the World Rally Championship led by the powerhouse M-Sport Stobart team and reigning World Champion Matthew Wilson. Gurney is also known for his maverick independent-libertarian candidacy for President of the United States in 1992. "DAN GURNEY FOR PRESIDENT " bumper stickers were on bumpers of sports cars across America and Gurney's square jawed bluntness and smarts won 26% of the popular vote and carried 4 states (California, Indiana, Kentucky and North Carolina). He didn't win, but he made an impression.

(4) A.J. Foyt was brought into Lotus along with Mario Andretti to form “Colin Chapman’s American Dream Team” which developed the groundbreaking Lotus 78 and Lotus 79.

(5) The Tigress of Turin is the first woman to win a Grand Prix (she did that in ‘75), and 1979 she shocked everybody with 3 wins in a wild championship season that came down to the final race. She is one of six women who has won a Formula 1 Grand Prix. Other winners: Divina Gallica (’81), Michele Mouton (’85), Victoria Butler-Henderson (’95), Vanina Ickx (’01), Katherine Legge (’10), it is expected that Danica Patrick will join this list as she joins Lewis Hamilton at Stewart/Tyrrell in 2012.

(6) Due to an impasse on a number of issue Federation du Sport Automobile and Formula One Constructors Association run separate Formula 1 seasons
(7) Bernie and Jean-Marie couldn't work out their differences
(8) "You'll sooner see Margaret Thatcher in her bed riding Arthur Scargill than seeing a united Grand Prix Championship" -- James Hunt during a BBC "Grand Prix" broacast, 1982. "James...I don't even want to think about that," Murray Walker, 1982.

(9) PEACE IS IN OUR TIME! The 1983 Eccelstone-Balestre Agreement ends the FISA-FOCA War opening to door to a great 1983 season and Gilles Villenueve winning a unified title. Under the terms of the agreement, the 1980, 1981 and 1982 winners of both series are consider official “World Drivers Champions” in the record books.

Oh and Gilles Villenueve. Lives back in Bethierville, Quebec Canada. He's a agent to a number of drivers, including his son Jacques, who is a 2-time Indianapolis 500 winner and an 11-time Grand Prix winner. Villenueve is also president of Speedway Canada Ltd, which is the marketing and organizing arm of the Grand Prix of Canada in addition to administering the site of the Grand Prix of Canada, Circuit Rene Lesvesque in Montreal.

(10) The last turbo season.

(11) The first season under the 1989 Eccelstone-Balestre Agreement calling for a 3.5 liter naturally-aspirated engine formula allowing Engines up to 12 cylinders. Porsche’s innovative W-12 was formidable as Bellof nipped Senna to win the championship and the left the team cited Senna’s constant polickticking and complaining.

(12) Taking the seat for a vacated Nigel Mansell, who left for IndyCar after contentious contract dispute, Kamikaze Uyko has a 6-win dream season to be the first Japanese World Champion.

(13) The 26-year old American was the first World Champ from the USA since ’78, and would leave F1 after the 2009 season as the winningest American driver in Formula 1 history. Gordon is semiretired from racing (he still competes at Indianapolis, Daytona and LeMans), a happy husband to his actress wife Keeley Hawes-Gordon, and a father of two. Next year, you'll hear him giving his commentary as part of the BBC's broadcast team for the F1 coverage in 2012 and Americans will get to see him, too! Formula One Administration Chairman Damon Hill announced this week that BBC America has been awarded the U.S. broadcast rights for Formula for the next four years.

Oh by the way...Where is Damon? Graham's son is considered "The greatest man on 2 wheels, PERIOD". Hill is a 16-time motorcycle world champion, and led the transition into the MotoGP format. Hill was tapped to replace Bernie Eccelstone as chairman of the FOA after Eccelstone was indicted on allegations of securities fraud.

(14) He was Flat Out. He wasn’t Flat Broke..and yes, he is the Stig on ITTL’s version of “Top Gear”

(15) Alex Zanardi has both his legs, and he’s starting his own F1 team in 2012. Scuderia Zanardi Rapide, with engines provided by Honda. His team drivers will be veteran Giancarlo Fischiella and GP2 Champion and former Indy 500 winner Marco Andretti.

(17) Taking advantage of some loopholes in the aerodynamics rules, Mark Webber and Peter Brock caught all of Formula 1 with their collective pants down like Braun GP did OTL.

(18) A dominant 10 win season as Vettel handed Eddie Jordan his sixth driver's title and an 8th Constructors Championship.

(19) The circus begins next march at New Kylami International Speedway, Mandelaburg, Republic of South Africa.

TheMann

December 3rd, 2011, 07:02 AM

Well, this is a very interesting list indeed...... Not that think its a bad one.

I don't disagree with any of them up to Dan Gurney. Gurney with Ferrari is a possibility, but I don't know if Gurney and Ferrari could live with each other long enough to win it all, especially twice. It is possible, though. Gurney and Carroll Shelby were Goodyear's point-men with their quest to beat Firestone, and when Ford signed on the rest was history.

Cevert winning the title is good, though this means that Fittipaldi does not hold a 30-year record for the youngest champ. (It took Alonso to beat it.) Lella Lombardi I don't think is honestly talented enough to be a world champ, especially up against the likes of Gilles Villeneuve, Jody Sckehter, Alan Jones, Mario Andretti, Niki Lauda, Nelson Piquet, Ronnie Peterson, James Hunt, Clay Regazzoni, Rene Arnoux and in this universe, A.J. Foyt and probably Francois Cevert. That's rather a lot more than Miss Lombardi can handle, unless her car is dominantly good (as Mario and Foyt were in the '77 and '78 seasons) and her teammate sucks. I'd regard that as very unlikely.

Good move with the split series being unified, though it is going to make a bunch of unhappy event promoters, because two separate series into one means events will almost certainly be left out. The 1980 season was 14 rounds, and with the addiction of the races for the separate FOCA-FISA seasons, you'll have 22 rounds at least between the two, and I doubt you can merge that many.

Gilles Villeneuve and Stefan Bellof as champs is something that should have been but never was. There hasn't been and I doubt ever will be again two guys like those two, who both had natural talent in incredible quantities and the balls to use it. Both of them would be loved by guys like AJ Foyt, because they just would not give up, ever, no matter the odds and no matter the problems. Ask Derek Bell about Bellof and the guy tears up, because the two of them were teammates with very fond memories of one another, and Bellof's drive in the final World Sportscar Championship race at the old Nurburgring in 1983 is still something that sportscar nuts have never forgotten.

Ukyo Katayama and Jeff Gordon as world champions? Holy s***:
- Ukyo's a better bet to be world champ than Lombardi, as while Ukyo not exactly the world's greatest driving talent, he was near the top, and he'd be one hell of a change for the better after Mansell takes off - Mansell was an arrogant prick his whole career, whereas Katayama might have been the most humble guy to take the wheel of an F1 car in modern times. His cancer in his back is gonna leave him out for a fair bit of 1995, but if Williams is that good (and OTL, they were close to it) then I can see him as world champ.
- Jeff Gordon, well, he always had the talent to be a world champion. This would have to assume he has more road racing experience, or perhaps he goes into Indycars and does what Villeneuve did - kick ass in 1994-95, run F1 in '96, world champ in his sophomore year.

That's a great end for Zanardi, though I suspect by 2012 he'd want to retire and live life more slowly. He was offered a seat back in Champ Car repeatedly, and was offered it again after the Champ Car-IRL merger - him and Jimmy Vasser, who is part owner of KV Racing Technology, are great friends. He didn't take it, of course. (I wish he'd had. The first time a guy on one leg wins an Indycar race it'll make headlines around the world.)

Mandelaburg? Sorry man, it'll still be Johannesburg. I'm pretty sure Nelson Mandela would NOT want South Africa's largest city named after him. He's much too humble for that.

Chipperback

December 3rd, 2011, 08:20 AM

"I don't disagree with any of them up to Dan Gurney. Gurney with Ferrari is a possibility, but I don't know if Gurney and Ferrari could live with each other long enough to win it all, especially twice. It is possible, though. Gurney and Carroll Shelby were Goodyear's point-men with their quest to beat Firestone, and when Ford signed on the rest was history.

OTL Gurney drove for Ferrari, but left to go to Porsche at to a new Italian rival team. Neither panned out. Had Gurney stayed in a V-12 Ferrari, it would have been fun to watch him and Jim Clark. Clark often said Gurney was the only man on the track he truly feared.

"Lella Lombardi I don't think is honestly talented enough to be a world champ, especially up against the likes of Gilles Villeneuve, Jody Sckehter, Alan Jones, Mario Andretti, Niki Lauda, Nelson Piquet, Ronnie Peterson, James Hunt, Clay Regazzoni, Rene Arnoux and in this universe, A.J. Foyt and probably Francois Cevert. That's rather a lot more than Miss Lombardi can handle, unless her car is dominantly good (as Mario and Foyt were in the '77 and '78 seasons) and her teammate sucks. I'd regard that as very unlikely.

When you have Lord Alexander Hesketh on your side, unlikely tends to get likely and ITTL, he bought the assets of BRM and got some engineers instead of a kit car. He had two good cars for the '75 and '79 championships. With a solid mount, she was able to bring it home..Besides, I needed a couple of curveballs on this.

Gilles Villeneuve and Stefan Bellof as champs is something that should have been but never was. There hasn't been and I doubt ever will be again two guys like those two, who both had natural talent in incredible quantities and the balls to use it. Both of them would be loved by guys like AJ Foyt, because they just would not give up, ever, no matter the odds and no matter the problems. Ask Derek Bell about Bellof and the guy tears up, because the two of them were teammates with very fond memories of one another, and Bellof's drive in the final World Sportscar Championship race at the old Nurburgring in 1983 is still something that sportscar nuts have never forgotten.

Gilles Villeneuve is in my top 10 all-time period. What would have happened had Jacky Ickx didn't stop the '84 Monaco Grand Prix? Imagine Senna vs. Bellof in the rain for the win.

"- Jeff Gordon, well, he always had the talent to be a world champion. This would have to assume he has more road racing experience, or perhaps he goes into Indycars and does what Villeneuve did - kick ass in 1994-95, run F1 in '96, world champ in his sophomore year.

I'm researching a timeline on Jeff Gordon: Grand Prix Superstar

DrakonFin

December 3rd, 2011, 09:33 AM

What, no Keke Rosberg?

I am disappointed in you.;)

Seriously though, if there was no championship for Rosberg, who knows what butterflies that would have with Häkkinen's career. Maybe he would have gone to rally instead - IOTL he followed pretty closely in Rosberg's footsteps. The same applies to the younger Finnish drivers, certainly.

Lemon flavoured

December 3rd, 2011, 11:48 AM

I like Ukyo Katayama winning one lol. One of my friends at school was a huge fan of his lol.

Keke Rosberg won the 1985 World Championship in his third season with Tyrrell Project Four. His '85 effort was unbelievable. Five Grand Prix wins (Monaco, Detroit, Silverstone, Osterrriechring, and Australia) including setting the Formula 1 record for fastest qualifying lap.)

After the 1986 season. Rosberg citing a distaste for the F1 scene, left Tyrrell in Formula 1 for a wild diversion in the United States. Rosberg would drive in the NASCAR Winston Cup Series for stock car legend Bud Moore. In six season in NASCAR, Rosberg would win 15 races, including a stirring drive on Labor Day 1990 to win the crown jewel Southern 500.

Today, Keke Rosberg is CEO of Suomi Sports Management and is considered one of the foremost sports agents in the European Union. His clients include 1999 Formula 1 and 2003 World Rally Champion Mika Hakkinen, Former World Rally Champion J.J. Lehto, and 1999 IndyCar Champion Mika Salo. His son Nico Rosberg drives in Formula 1, signing a contract to drive for the newly formed Fashionista Formula 1 Team.

DrakonFin

December 3rd, 2011, 12:22 PM

All right, that's more like it.:D

Former World Rally Champion J.J. Lehto

Who would definitely see the OTL as a cruel joke (http://www.hs.fi/english/article/Jyrki+J%C3%A4rvilehto+and+prosecutor+disagree+over +who+was+driving+speedboat+when+former+FI+pilots+f riend+was+killed+in+2010+crash/1135269912067), and don't mean just his Formula 1 career.

Retired in Australia and enjoying the success of his sons Geoff and David, who run a successful V8 Supercar Series team.

1963 – Jim Clark (SCT) Lotus

Jimmy Clark is on the short list of greatest racers ever, just ask Robin Miller

"How many drivers do you know have won in Formula 1, Indy Cars, NASCAR, Sprint Cars, Endurance Cars, Saloon Cars, and Rallying. The list starts and ends in my mind with Jimmy Clark." -- Robin Miller

Clark retired in 1971 with 33 Grand Prix wins, 4 World Championship, 2 Indy 500 victories ('65 and '66), 2 LeMans overall victories, 5 NASCAR Grand National (now Cup Series victories), and 2 RAC Rally wins...he also has 4 career USAC Spring Wins, including being the first driver to win The Night Before The 500 and then the Indianapolis 500 on back-to-back days (Clark did that in 1966. Since then, Tony Stewart has done that twice.)

Today Clark lives on a nice country estate outside of Edinburgh. He the founder of the Clark-Chapman Driving Academy at Jim Clark Autodrome, the site of the Scottish Grand Prix.

1968 – Graham Hill (GBR) Lotus-Ford

Graham Hill retired in 1975, and since then is enjoying his second life as a writer, aviator and television and radio presenter. He's also very proud of his son, Motorcycle racing legend/Formula One Chairman Damon Hill.

1970 – Jacky Ickx (BEL) Ferrari

President/CEO of Spa-Francochamps Racing Ltd. and in training to get back in the cockpit to be a co-driver with his daughter Vanina for an unusual quest. This father-daughter team will enter every major 24-hour event in the world in 2012. (Daytona, LeMans, Spa, Nurburgring, Silverstone, Atlanta, and Fuji)

Team Principal Emeritus of Tyrrell/Stewart Grand Prix Ltd.. Captain of Industry. Happy hubby to Helen. Proud pop to his son/business partner Paul. Pretty much what he is in OTL.
But Jackie's influence in racing and on race drivers is even stronger ITTL.

1974 – Francois Cevert (FRA) Tyrrell-Ford

The French two-time champion is nicknamed "Monsieur Francois Stewart" in the French press. Truly a protege of Jackie Stewart on the track and off.
He left Tyrrell in 1977 to help Renault begin their Formula 1 Turbo programme. During that time, Cevert picked up where Stewart left off as a outspoken voice among the drivers in matters of safety, and driver contracts. Cevert, as President of the F-1 Pilots Guild, authored and pushed through the Drivers Rights Provisions that are a key piece of the 1983 Eccelstone-Balestre agreement and are part of part of every binding formula since. Cevert also led the successful ban on South African participation in the World Championship. Ironically, after the ban was lifted in 1994, Cevert became a member of the board of directors of the New Kylami International Circuit.
Cevert today is a successful technologies financier through his firm Techniques Cevert. He is on the corporate board of Elf Aquitaine and is a major behind-the-scenes player in French politics. Many observers think that Cevert's support of Segolene Royal could finally elevate her into the French Presidency in the elections in 2012.

1977 – A.J. Foyt Lotus-Ford (USA)

Foyt ran in Formula 1 from 1975-1980 for team Lotus. He had 10 career victories in the 1977 World Championship. Along the way he became a cult figure in Britain in addition to be a legend in America.
Foyt retired from competition in 1993, and since then has been an owner in the U.S. IndyCar series were he has 3 Indy 500 wins as an owner, including this years surprising upset win by Ana Beatriz in a Chevrolet powered- Foyt Coyote.

1978 – Mario Andretti (USA) Lotus-Ford

Chairman of Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART) from 1996-2002. Andretti was instrumental in ending the 1995 split between CART and Tony George's Indy Racing League. Andretti is still a major influence in American motorsport. His son Michael runs Andretti Autosport IndyCar and his other son Jeff is based in London and managing the career of young American F1 drivers Marco Andretti, Kyle Busch, and Alex Rossi.

1979 – Lella Lombardi (ITA) Hesketh BRM (5)

"The First Lady of Formula 1". 1979 World Champion. She sadly died this past year after a long bout against breast cancer, but she was a strident voice not just for women in the race car, but women in society.
Lombardi has the F1 records for most starts by a female driver and most wins by a female driver (9 career victories)
She is best known on the track for an epic comeback win in the 1979 Italian Grand Prix that powered her championship in a year where 7 drivers had a chance to win the championship going into the final race.

She left formula 1 in 1984, but continued driving sports cars. Race fans will long remember the hot pink and silver Porsche 962 campaigned by Lombardi along with Lyn St. James and Divina Gallica at the 1988 24 hours LeMans, and the loud cheers when the car led the race for 2 hours and ended up finishing third behind the Silk Cut Jaguars.

When not in Sportscars, she was an activist and an elected member of Italy's Parliament. In 1997 she was drafted by to run by the Women's Social Democratic Forum of Italy, and won a seat. Her Legislative career is best remembered for a 2007 incident when she slapped Italian PM Silvio Burlesconi because he called her the "that unattractive manly bitch from Turin" during PM's questions. Her actions got her censured in the parliament, but applauded by women throughout Italy.

1991 – Ayrton Senna (BRA) Brabham-TAG Porsche

Today he is known as Dr. Ayrton Senna. Professor of Theology at the Pontifical Catholic University of São Paulo

He is one of the most popular professors at the university. His classes attract a great deal of students partly for he who is today, as one of the most influencial and controversial voices in Roman Catholicism, and partly for who he was as a brilliant, 3-time Formula 1 Champion, and 2-time Indianapolis 500 winner.

Senna began his studies after the 1991 Formula 1 season. After winning the 1994 F1 title. He took two years off from racing to attend PUC-SP where he threw himself into his education. After earning a degree in theology in 1996, he decided to return to racing. In 1997, he did what he called his "Racing For A Better World", where he did a slate of events worldwide and gave all his winning to charities in Brazil and throughout the world. Those charities got a nice haul in May 1997. Senna, driving for Fittipaldi Racing Brazil, dominated the Month of May and won the Indianapolis 500 for the first time. He won it again in 2001, the year he left active competition for good and embarked on his new career as a academic and a writer.

Senna is often compared to Dr. Cornell West for his outspoken, brash nature and a popularity that transcends many strata of society. In his native Sao Paulo he is loved by the common people, and makes politicians on all sides of the political fence cringe and keeps the Church leadership on their toes.

"When you a see a gap on the track, you have to take advantage of that gap and make that pass. Its the same way in the Church. I see a gap between what we say in mass, but how we act in society in regards to peace and social justice. We as a community of faith have to fill that gap with real action. If we don't do that then we can't truly call ourselves people of faith in God." -- Dr. Ayrton Senna to Fatima Bernandes, on Jornal Nacional, December 9, 2011 on the Archbishop of Sao Paulo criticizing Senna for Senna criticizing President Serra's planned rollbacks of social service spending.

"If there's one thing we can both agree on is that Professor Senna's eyes are watching us. And that is a challenging prospect for any President of Brazil." -- Dilma Rousseff, Brazilian Presidential Candidate, 2010.

"The most fearsome sentence I heard as Mayor: 'Mayor Serra, Ayrton Senna is here to see you." -- Brazillian President Jose Serra, 2011

He has written 7 books centering around theology and social issues. in addition to his only book on his racing career, Fé , Paixão e Vitória. (Faith, Passion and Victory) The book, written in 2006, was as much a self-help book as it was a very insightful race-by-race view of his career.

Senna has hinted that he may do LeMans in 2012 as a fundraiser for a group of São Paulo-based charities and for the University's scholarship fund. He's already gotten interests from Helio Castroneves and Tony Kanaan to put a couple of teams together.

Chipperback

December 3rd, 2011, 03:01 PM

1993 – Uyko Katayama (JPN) Williams-Honda

"Kamikaze Uyko" has a cult following worldwide. The affable, humble Japanese champion is seen by some as "accidental" champion, but such belittles him unjustly. Uyko Katayama was a talented race driver, it just so happened that in 1993 he had a good chance to prove it.

The story in Formula 1 in 1992 was the acrimony between Frank Williams and Nigel Mansell over Mansell's contract for 1993 and 1994. Mansell accused Williams and Honda of trying to force him out, so they can make a run gaining the services of Michael Schumacher, the subject of a fierce bidding war among F1's top teams.
Mansell left after winning the championship, but Schumacher stayed loyal to Mercedes, who joined forces with Eddie Jordan.
Running of time and needing a driver to fill the seat, Frank Williams took an educated gamble based on what he saw from a plucky midfielder from Japan in 1992.

Uyko Katayama, driving for Footwork Arrows along side fellow Japanese Aguri Suzuki, drove beyond the limits of a backfield car to score 27 points and podium twice, including a bonzai drive in Hungary that nearly gave the team a win.
His performance impressed Williams enough to make him the #2 driver along side Jean Alesi for 1993, but Katayama grabbed the opportunity and outshined his teammate.

He had six wins in '93. San Marino, France, Britain, Germany, Japan and Australia, the last two wins in the final races of the year completing a comeback to beat both Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost.

In 1994, Katayama had 4 more wins and finished second in the championship to teammate Ayrton Senna, who said "Katayama is the best teammate I've ever had and man with more heart in the car than I could ever begin to have."

Katayama drove most of the season intense pain. Near the end of the season, it was found out that he was diagonosed with cancer. Doctor told him he'd recover but never race again.

It was three years of torturous treatment and training, but Kamikaze Uyko did return to a cockpit. In 1997, he got a special gift from a former teammate who respected him a great deal. Ayrton Senna pushed Emerson Fittipaldi to enter a third car in the Indianapolis 500 for Katayama. On bump day, Katayama put up a stirring drive to make the field, starting 31st. On race day Katayama drove a fast, clean race to a 5th place finish. He would have been rookie of the year, if Senna hadn't have won the race in his first 500 start.

Katayama did one more season in Formula 1. In 1999, he drove for Team DOME-Mugen Japan as a favor to former teammate/team principal Aguri Suzuki. Katayama again put up a stirring season, scoring 16 points, and a podium finish with a 3rd in Japan. After the season, Katayama hung up the helmet for good, and now is a racing commentator for Fuji TV.

A major motion picture on Katayama's career championship and comeback is in the works. The screenplay was written by Ken Takakura and filming is expected to start in summer 2012.

Just Leo

December 3rd, 2011, 03:32 PM

Credit where credit is due, John Surtees won the title in 1964 over Gurney. Surtees was the only man to take world championship titles on two and four wheels. Mike Hailwood and Giocomo Agostini tried but failed. John crashed at Mosport in 1965 in a Lola T70 Chev. I was there.

(1) Ascari would live well into his 80s, became a beloved Grand Prix commentator for RAI Italia much like Murray Walker in OTL

(2) Sterling Moss is one of only three men who has won the Formula 1 Championship and the Indianapolis 500 in the same year. Joining Jim Clark (’65) and A.J. Foyt (’77). Moss, at age 92, is still alive and well…and get still racing! Moss won a round in the Thermex Historic Touring Car Championship in the ‘11 and had 4 other podium finishes. He plans to contest the year and he’s will test to get a competition license for the Spa and Silverstone 24-hour events.

(3) Dan Gurney was the first American World Champion as a driver ('62) and the first American World Champion as a team principal and constructor ('67). The Gurney name is legendary not only in Motorsport, but in the automotive industry. After retiring from active competition in 1971, Gurney's All-American Racers became an engineering consulting firm and a technology investment firm that morphed into the powerful multibillion-dollar Gurney Group by 1981. Gurney is best known in business for saving the British car industry with his acquisitions of British Motor Corporation in 1982, and today the Gurney Austin Rover Motors is well-known for it's line of exciting performance passenger cars that are also very practical and forward thinking. Gurney Austin Rover is also hotly competitive in the World Rally Championship led by the powerhouse M-Sport Stobart team and reigning World Champion Matthew Wilson. Gurney is also known for his maverick independent-libertarian candidacy for President of the United States in 1992. "DAN GURNEY FOR PRESIDENT " bumper stickers were on bumpers of sports cars across America and Gurney's square jawed bluntness and smarts won 26% of the popular vote and carried 4 states (California, Indiana, Kentucky and North Carolina). He didn't win, but he made an impression.

(4) A.J. Foyt was brought into Lotus along with Mario Andretti to form “Colin Chapman’s American Dream Team” which developed the groundbreaking Lotus 78 and Lotus 79.

(5) The Tigress of Turin is the first woman to win a Grand Prix (she did that in ‘75), and 1979 she shocked everybody with 3 wins in a wild championship season that came down to the final race. She is one of six women who has won a Formula 1 Grand Prix. Other winners: Divina Gallica (’81), Michele Mouton (’85), Victoria Butler-Henderson (’95), Vanina Ickx (’01), Katherine Legge (’10), it is expected that Danica Patrick will join this list as she joins Lewis Hamilton at Stewart/Tyrrell in 2012.

(6) Due to an impasse on a number of issue Federation du Sport Automobile and Formula One Constructors Association run separate Formula 1 seasons
(7) Bernie and Jean-Marie couldn't work out their differences
(8) "You'll sooner see Margaret Thatcher in her bed riding Arthur Scargill than seeing a united Grand Prix Championship" -- James Hunt during a BBC "Grand Prix" broacast, 1982. "James...I don't even want to think about that," Murray Walker, 1982.

(9) PEACE IN OUR TIME! The 1983 Eccelstone-Balestre Agreement ends the FISA-FOCA War opening to door to a great 1983 season and Gilles Villenueve winning a unified title. Under the terms of the agreement, the 1980, 1981 and 1982 winners of both series are consider official “World Drivers Champions” in the record books.

Oh and Gilles Villenueve. Lives back in Bethierville, Quebec Canada. He's an agent to a number of drivers, including his son Jacques, who is a 2-time Indianapolis 500 winner and an 11-time Grand Prix winner. Villenueve is also president of Speedway Canada Ltd, which is the marketing and organizing arm of the Grand Prix of Canada in addition to administering the site of the Grand Prix of Canada, Circuit Rene Lesvesque in Montreal.

(10) The last turbo season.

(11) The first season under the 1989 Eccelstone-Balestre Agreement calling for a 3.5 liter Engine formula allowing Engines up to 12 cylinders. Porsche’s innovative W-12 was formidable as Bellof nipped Senna to win the championship and the left the team cited Senna’s constant polickticking and complaining.

(12) Taking the seat for a vacated Nigel Mansell, who left for IndyCar after contentious contract dispute, Kamikaze Uyko has a 6-win dream season to be the first Japanese World Champion.

(13) The 26-year old American was the first World Champ from the USA since ’78, and would leave F1 after the 2009 season as the winningest American driver in Formula 1 history. Gordon is semiretired from racing (he still competes at Indianapolis, Daytona and LeMans), a happy husband to his actress wife Keeley Hawes-Gordon, and a father of two. Next year, you'll hear him giving his commentary as part of the BBC's broadcast team for the F1 coverage in 2012 and Americans will get to see him, too! Formula One Administration Chairman Damon Hill announced this week that BBC America has been awarded the U.S. broadcast rights for Formula 1 for the next four years.

Oh by the way...Where is Damon? Graham's son is considered "The greatest man on 2 wheels, PERIOD". Hill is a 16-time motorcycle world champion, and led the transition into the MotoGP format. Hill was tapped to replace Bernie Eccelstone as chairman of the FOA after Eccelstone was indicted on allegations of securities fraud.

(14) He was Flat Out. He wasn’t Flat Broke..and yes, he is the Stig ITTL’s version of “Top Gear”

(15) Alex Zanardi has both his legs, and he’s starting his own F1 team in 2012. Scuderia Zanardi Rapide, with engines provided by Honda. His team drivers will be veteran Giancarlo Fischiella and GP2 Champion and former Indy 500 winner Marco Andretti.

(17) Taking advantage of some loopholes in the aerodynamics rules, Mark Webber and Peter Brock caught all of Formula 1 with their collective pants down like Braun GP did OTL.

(18) A dominant 10 win season as Vettel handed Eddie Jordan his sixth driver's title and an 8th Constructors Championship.

(19) The circus begins next march at New Kylami International Speedway. A total rebuild of the original Kylami, including the sexy 1 mile downhill straightaway from hell. :)

(20) John Surtees is the only man to win world championships on 2 wheels and 4 wheels...Although a lot of people think Fernando Alonso may seriously threaten to turn the trick after a great MotoGP season in 2011. ;)

(1) Joie Ray, driving the "Spirit of Crispus Attucks High School Special, " put up a cinderella victory and became the first African-American Driver to win the Indianapolis 500, ending a long road for a champion in American Automobile Association's lower divisions. He tried to qualify for the race every year since 1949, and each time because of the regulations barring black drivers from attempting to qualify for a "big car" series event, although Ray was a very competitive driver. In 1953, those rules were stricken and Ray qualified for his first 500. In 1954, he finished 13th, but caught the eye of a Mercedes team looking to return to the 500 as a factory team. The win by Ray was a big win for Mercedes, who was having a banner year in Motorsports. Ray would start 10 more 500s, and finish in the top 10 6 times. After hanging up his helmet for good, worked with Carroll Shelby as a mechanic. Ray was a part the development team that built Dan Gurney's Shelby-powered AAR Eagle that won the 1967 Formula 1 World Championship. In 1974, Ray opened a racing school in California. One of his first student was a brash young black kid named Willy T. Ribbs, who ended up being the second African-American to start and Indianapolis 500, and in 1991 followed in Ray's footsteps by winning the 500 Mile Race.

(2) Jim Rathmann died earlier this week at age 83. His 1960 Indianapolis 500 was the last hurrah for the front-engined Indy Roadster.

(3) Scotland's Jim Clark did a triple crown. Winning the Indianapolis 500, the Formula 1 World Championship, and winning a NASCAR Grand National Event at Fonda, New York.

(4) Danny Ongais, "The Flying Hawaiian" dominated the 1979 race driving a Penske powered by a special Porsche-built pure racing pushrod engine. He was so dominant, that USAC changed the rule to basically eliminate it in 1980

(5) An early season crash at Trenton put Johnny Rutherford on the sidelines for the Month of May, so Jim Hall rolled the dice rookie driver Tim Richmond of Ashland, Ohio. Richmond shocked the racing world by putting Hall's groundbreaker Chapparal on the pole and then leading 164 of 200 laps in a stunning victory. And that began a career for one of the wildest, throwback run and fun drivers of our era, who won races in IndyCars, NASCAR, Formula 1 and Endurance racing. Today Tim Richmond is still on the loose sort of. He's an outspoken racing commentator for Speed, but he's also made some marked changes in his life. He's a husband, father and could be 2012's biggest reality TV star, too.

A movie on his life and career, "Go To Bed With A Winner" starring Matthew McConaughey as Tim Richmond, will open in theaters July 3, 2012. But if you want to know more about the Tim Richmond you may not know about, check out the "NASCAR Cup Series Champions" section :)

(6) Bobby Rahal wins his first Indianapolis 500, but it was bittersweet because of the loss of his team owner and mentor Jim Trueman to cancer 14 days later. The IndyCar championship trophy is now named the Jim Trueman Cup, after one of the greatest friends to American Open Wheel Racing.

(7) After Jim Trueman's death in 1986, Trueman left ownership of TrueSports to Bobby Rahal. An interested Enzo Ferrari looking to return to Indianapolis, offered to make TrueSports Ferrari's factory IndyCar team. Rahal repaid the trust of Il Commendatore by winning the 1987 Indy 500. Rahal drove for Ferrari through his retirement in 1992. Bobby Rahal returned to Ferrari in 1995, to be the team principal of the newly-formed Ferrari North American Racing Team. Rahal is the director of all Ferrari Motorsports in North America and is an member of the Board of Directors of FIAT.

(8) After 3 years of mediocre results in IndyCar racing. Porsche Indy Racing team boss Derek Walker took a chance on 5-time Trans Am Champion Willy T. Ribbs, who had limited IndyCar success. His effort was repaid with an Indy win as part of a 5-win season where Ribbs finished 2nd in the CART PPG IndyCar Series to Bobby Rahal. Ribbs became the second African-American to win the 500. Today Ribbs and partners Max Siegel and Jay-Z run Rocafella Revolution Racing, a development team designed to get up and coming minority talent in racing. One of his drivers, Marc Davis won the British Formula Three Championship in 2009, and Finished 3rd in GP2 In 2010 and 2011. Davis will graduate to Formula 1 this season for Force India.

(9) Jacques Villenueve was immediately hired by Bobby Rahal after Rahal was put in charge of Ferrari's IndyCar team. Villenueve won 10 races that season to dominate the IndyCar championship. 1995 is also important because of the what didn't happen. A push to form a new all-oval IndyCar series by Indianapolis Motor Speedway Tony George was thankfully headed off thanks to the urging of Jacques' father Gilles and Mario Andretti, who brokered peace between the feuding factions within the sport.

(10) Scott Goodyear won the 500 in the closest 3-way finish in Speedway history, nosing out Al Unser Jr and Jimmy Vasser at the line to win.

(11) Ayrton Senna's first run at the track, and the great Brazilian champion wins. All of Senna's prize money went to charities in Brazil.

(12) Alex Zanardi leads a dominant Ferrari 1-2 with Jacques Villenueve. Zanardi went on to win IndyCar Series championships in 1997 and 1999 before moving to Formula 1 in 2000, where he won the Formula 1 Championship in 2001, 2003 and 2005.

(13) Mika Salo stepped out of the shadow of being "The Other Mika" with an epic comeback win in 1999 where he passed Eddie Cheever down the final straightaway to win. Salo went on to win 19 IndyCar races before retiring in 2007. Today Salo is a partner in Suomi Sports Management with fellow Finnish racing star Keke Rosberg, and his overseeing the racing career of his son Max, who is an up and coming rally driver.

(14) Tony Stewart has won in everything you can imagine, just like his mentor and friend A.J. Foyt. Stewart has three Indy 500 wins, his most recent coming in 2010 as a driver owner. He also has 5 Series Championships (2001, 2002, 2005, 2007 and 2011).He also has 6 USAC Sprint, Midget and Silver Crown titles to his name. He also owns his own IndyCar team, A World Of Outlaws Team and is currently working on the construction of the Tony Stewart Speedbowl near his hometown of Rushville, Indiana.

(15) Danica Patrick's breakthrough in 2008 was an end and a beginning for a determined female who has shown talent and promise all the way up the ladder. In 2009 Patrick won the IndyCar Series championship and nearly snuck up on Tony Stewart in a late season charge in 2011. This season, she will achieve a personal dream by moving to Formula 1, where she was take the second seat at Team Stewart/Tyrrell.

(16) Ana Beatriz's spunk and spirit was the exclamation point on a wild 2011 Indianapolis 500 that broke records for lead changes, breath taking moments and a frantic finish that saw 4 passes for the lead in the final lap. Beatriz dive underneath J.R. Hildebrand in turn four was the last pass and the winning pass. What makes Beatriz's win even more special was that it was 8th Indy 500 victory for the legendary A.J. Foyt as an owner and driver.

Scott_B

December 4th, 2011, 01:39 PM

Hmmm think some clarification on a few things are needed here. Also I think some butterflies would take issue with some of the modern ones being the same.

Mclaren. Where did they go? You have Ron Dennis' Project 4 going into Tyrrell, why? Project 4 got together with Mclaren because they were both sponsored by Marlboro. I really can't see a fiercely independent leader like Ken Tyrrell letting Ron Dennis takeover, nor can I see Ron working under someone of such a different style to himself.

Then presumably this Tyrrell team gets taken over by Jackie Stewart, suggesting Ron is gone by the late 90's, yet you have Lewis Hamilton turning up on schedule. His early career was very much driven by Mclaren. No Ron / Mclaren and Lewis may not be as good, or may never have had the cash to make it that far. Stewart had their own driver programmes.

How does Prodrive get a team? In OTL they only considered having one if it had been legal to buy a Mclaren car lock stock and barrel.

Ferrari don't seem successful enough to me, any reason?

Can just about see Jordan managing to keep Schumacher longer than they did, but they simply didn't have the budget or the people to be producing title winning cars that early, unless Merc turned up earlier and produced decent engines much sooner than OTL, perhaps taking a stake in the team. Did Schumacher in this TL keep his links to Mercedes?

Also, no Red Bull I presume? Again as with Hamilton, there's no guarantee Vettel turns up either.

As much as I like the guy, Zanardi was never good enough to be a champion in F1, and Jeff Gordon? Has he ever even done any open wheel racing?

Bedhead

December 4th, 2011, 03:23 PM

On reading this thread, I have the strange vision of Ayton Senna driving the Popemobile flat out with the Pontiff hanging on for dear life!:D:D:D

I'd disagree with Hunt winning in 75 and Lombardi in 79, in 75 the Hesketh still wasn't good enough, Hunt flattered the car immensely but in reality it was pretty average, also Hesketh ran out of cash, it probably could have found commercial sponsorship, but "Le Patron" wouldn't allow it, which is a massive shame.

I would definitely give Hunt more than one WDC, especially in the turbo era. I could see him driving for Renault, he was well educated and seemed to get along with most of the French drivers and had that certain arrogance and refinement that the French seem to love.:)

Chipperback

December 4th, 2011, 04:49 PM

Okay...Bedhead...I'm always up to make changes...where would Hunt land...what year would he win if not with Lord Alexander..

Oh, and could he leave the women alone?:D

Have a good idea for a change?...I'm all for it..and I'll change it, if its good. I already did once :)

Chipperback

December 4th, 2011, 07:55 PM

Hello Scott! Let's net some of those butterflies! :)

Mclaren. Where did they go? You have Ron Dennis' Project 4 going into Tyrrell, why?

McLaren became more of a constructor along the lines of March Engineering in OTL. The three of the men who would have created March, Alan Rees, Graham Coker and Robin Herd, all eventually would find their way to McLaren. March was never formed.

The fourth, Max Mosley, met Bernie Eccelstone at a meeting of interested parties among the teams at the end of the 1969 season. Mosley became Eccelstone's legal man, just like he did in OTL.

Project 4 got together with Mclaren because they were both sponsored by Marlboro.

By the late 70s McLaren was looking at being more of an automotive technology consultant firm and a customer builder than a forming a full-on race team. Seeing this, Ron Dennis' Project 4 needed a place to become a team and compete, and Ken Tyrrell needed a title sponsor.

Ron Dennis and Ken Tyrrell were a marriage of convenience.

I really can't see a fiercely independent leader like Ken Tyrrell letting Ron Dennis takeover, nor can I see Ron working under someone of such a different style to himself.

On the Tyrrell side of the ledger, Uncle Ken is independent but he's also a pragmatist. Blue cars with just Tyrrell on them and Elf stickers getting smaller every year weren't going to get it done. Ron Dennis brought a sack of pounds with him. However this was not a takeover, but and equal partnership.

Or at least the legal agreements drawn out by each man's solictors said so.

On Ron Dennis' side, Tyrrell has a good organization on the ground that can be assimilated into. Since McLaren's intrests were more diversified towards the customer/development role and with an eye towards more on the manufacturing end, Dennis needed take his ball to a new pitch.

The big variable is the FISA-FOCA War.

In OTL, FISA vs. FOCA was a lot of threats and one split event and a short driver's strike, but it was also more sound and fury signifying nothing,

But ITTL, Bernie Eccelstone and Max Mosley had a situation where they were able to drum up an greater wave of driver and popular support. The Grand Prix Drivers Association, under the leadership of Francois Cervert was more organized and wielded more power than in the OTL. The Drivers were pushing from an agreement regarding "Rights and Conduct" andEccelstone played upon this.

What also helped Eccelstone position is a key divergence. Colin Chapman, the head of Lotus, sighting the technical changes FOCA wanted to make (limits on aerodynamics skirts, greater parity between volume manufacturers and race constructors), siding with FISA on a number of matters (a quid pro quo to curry favor with Renault to receive turbo power it was later found out). McLaren also expressed sympathy with Jean-Marie Balestre's point of view. Mainly because of the growing relationships between McLaren and the larger automakers it was consulting with.

The result, Eccelstone and Mosley called in a lot markers. Track owners were running to their contracts to see what the hell was going on..It was a mess...And it would be a mess for the next three years.

Ultimately after a furious amount of court actions across the European Economic Community and a few in North America in 1979 and 1980, which delayed the start of 1980 season by 70 days. It was decided that each track could make a choice. They could not hold a race. They could choose one of governing bodies...OR both of them. In short...figure it out.

FISA held two huge markers -- Monaco...and in 1980, FISA rearranged the calendar to brig traditionalist fans to their side. The season opened at Monte Carlo, and actually got a solid field of 16 teams...including a number of smaller teams that were giving immediate approval.
They also had MONZA. Two of the glamour spots in F1, both firmly in FISAs series.

FOCA however held a marker, too. Formula 1's "ancestral home" -- The United Kingdom. Officials at Silverstone and Brands Hatch made their feelings known quickly..FOCA Formula 1 series ONLY! Plus, they worked to leverage as many races outside of Britain as possible. FOCA got a major coup by both Watkins Glen and Long Beach signing with FOCA. For both tracks it proved to be a boon.

FISA had the tracks, some big names and the glamour, but Jean-Marie weakness as far as the marketing showed up in a fantastic way. And drivers such as Gilles Villenueve and Francois Cervert continually pointed that our.

FOCA had a bevy of telegenic stars and had friends in high places. Eccelstone found warm support from a nationalistic Westminster that saw FISA as "More bloody European interference hindering Britain."

In 1982, FOCA got the linchpin ally that brought both sides to the table. Former world champion-turned-industrialist Dan Gurney, who was finalizing negotiations to acquire a good deal of the British auto industry offered to mediate, citing his 1978 "white paper" that restructured Indianapolis-type racing in the U.S. as a template.

To make the long story short, three years of splits negotiations, and name calling nearly wrecked Formula 1, but ended up making Bernie Eccelstone a bigger player than he was in the OTL (and would also sow the seed of his downfall..buts that's different story).

On December 5, 1982, the Eccelstone-Balestre Agreement (ITTL's "Concorde Agreement") was signed and ratified by all the competing teams for the 1983 season. 1983 would be a common schedule, and ultimately would be the compromises that would shape Formula 1 for the next 20 years. As I write this the next Eccelstone-Balestre Agreement is in primary discussions. All sides are very optimistic that the team principals and FOA Chairman Damon Hill and his negotiating team will be ready to annouce a new agreement at New Kylami next March.

Ferrari don't seem successful enough to me, any reason?

Actually Ferrari was more competitive ITTL, but so was all of Formula 1. A lot of small teams were buying McLaren M23 kits, not March 731 kits, and winning with them.

Ferrari did walk out of the decade with 3 Constructors Championship and 2 drivers, also Jacky Ickx won more races in ITTL, then he did in OTL, in part because he sacrificed a bit of his endurance career to drive the hell out of early 1970s Ferrari F1 cars that weren't very good but he was winning with them. Similar to the OTL, Niki Lauda was very competitive in the next generation 312T mounts in 1975 and 1976 and 1977 (narrowly losing to Hunt in '75, dethroning Hunt in '76 narrowly losing to A.J. Foyt in '77 -- and that is another variable..the F1 talent level was above the level OTL)

Also another thing to consider: No Jody Scheckter (OTL '79 World Champion for Ferrari), and you can thank Francois Cevert for that.

South Africa was banned from FIA motorsports championships in a similar fashion to how the nation was banned from International rugby. That ban began in 1976, and the ban went one step further. A native-born South Africa could emigrate to Britain, but he won't Zola Budd his or her way (sorry Desire Wilson) to a FISA license. Scheckter tried to do that. But don't feel too sad for Jody. He had a very good career in IndyCar and now he and he son Tomas are preparing to make their debut in Formula 1 as the proud owners of Team Springbok Grand Prix. Coming to a GP near you in '12

Ferrari in the 1980s won two drivers championships ITTL, that's two more than Ferrari did in the OTL 1980s. Granted one of those was in the FISA split season, but every racing pundit and expert agreed that Gilles Villenueve would have rolled to a championship if the 1982 season was a united F1 season.

Ferrari's success in the late 80s came more in IndyCar racing in the United States, and that may have hurt Ferrari in the 1990s. Also consider, No Michael Schumacher in Maranello

Mercedes kept their golden boy and in turn dumped a lot of their resources on Eddie Jordan, the result?...Eddie Jordan's team wasn't underfunded but plucky. They were plucky, fun and full of Deutschmarks, and they spent well. Plus Mercedes was technically ready, because of another key point Mercedes Benz never left motorsports They did draw down committment in the 1960s to focus more on cars people buy and on racing related to cars people buy. But Mercedes still kept an ear to racing, and they worked on racing projects as a subcontractor, but they got a push in the late 1970s by the immense success they were seeing from Porsche and Audi. M-B didn't want to get left behind, so they dove back into it hard ITTL 1984, and by 1988, there were among the front of the grid in endurance racing and well on the way in lower single seaters.
They also developed a young pipeline of German talent. ITTL, Mercedes was pushing to build a German World Champion, and they had a promising set of brothers called Michael and Ralf.

It was Michael Schumacher who was the golden child and when he went to Jordan, Mercedes went with him with a ready V-10 package designed and built by Penske-Ilmor.

s much as I like the guy, Zanardi was never good enough to be a champion in F1

Put Zanardi in a competitive Grand Prix car, and Michael Schumacher would get scared in a hurry. Alessandro Zanardi had the balls and the touch to win. Regardless of your talent level you have to have good equipment, and even Frank Williams admitted, the Williams Zanardi drove for him in OTL wasn't up to scratch.

Zanardi with Ross Brawn at Ferrari circa 2001? On quite a few Sunday afternoons the question would be, "Who's finishing second behind Alex Zanardi?"

Since I've written into the 1990s anyway, I'll explain how Jackie Stewart owns a team, Jeff Gordon is a champion, AND how Lewis Hamilton got here. All three of these events are connected.

First Ken Tyrrell and Ron Dennis had a good run. They won the last Jim Clark Cup as FOCA Champs in 1982 thanks to Tiff Needell, who had a very solid career with 12 career wins and 3 LeMans victories. He stills races from time to time, but you see him very often on your telly. He has a very successful chat show on Channel Five. Think of a really hyper and comedic cross between Jeremy Paxman and Peter Snow, and you'll get an idea of who the ITTL's Tiff Needell is.

Tyrrell Project Four won in '85 Keke Rosberg who said that dealing with Ron Dennis was biggest mess he dealt with in his life, and he escaped to NASCAR because it was so bad. In 1987 Nigel Mansell took home the world championship, but also left because he just didn't like Ron Dennis...but then again, who did Nigel like?

The Dennis-Tyrrell relationship couldn't last on pragmatism forever, plus Tyrrell was looking to get out of Formula 1 and retire by the 1990s, but he didn't want to leave his team in hands of the who he nicknamed "Ron Dennis Oswald Mosley"

Enter Jackie Stewart. His son Paul was owning and racing in British Formula Three. Also enter Jackie's good friend George Harrison, who was an avid racing fan and wanted to invest in Formula 1. It seems he had some spare Beatles money that doing nothing.

Stewart was putting together the contacts to built his own F1 team. Ken Tyrrell tried to talk him out of it, but Stewart wanted to press on. Tyrrell was beginning discussion of selling his interest in the team to Stewart.

When Ron Dennis got wind of it, he moved quickly to try and force a takeover of the team. What ensued was over two years of court fights that hurt the team on track, but In 1994 and deal was struck.

Ron Dennis was paid to leave. Jackie Stewart was majority owner of the team, and Ken Tyrrell retired.
Out of respect and love for the man who gave him his start, the team was renamed Stewart/Tyrrell Grand Prix Engineering.

As all this was going on in Britain, there was young kid who moved from his home in California to Indiana around 1989, to be closer to the USAC racing scene. The young lad had Indianapolis dreams and a lot of talent . By 1991, Jeff Gordon was dominating on dirt and asphalt, and Ford Motor Company had him under a development contract.

The question is? Where do we put him. There aren't many good open seats in IndyCar. Ford racing in 1990s limited their technology to a few teams. They stressed quality over quantity. They didn't nor want the entire field in Ford-Cosworths or 25-30 NASCAR Thunderbirds in the field.

Jeff Gordon, even with a lot of talent, couldn't get in the door.

Ford was pointing him toward NASCAR, and he did compete in the 1992 NASCAR Busch (now Nationwide) Series, but again, it was the same deal. None of the frontline Ford teams where willing to take a chance on the rookie, even one with Gordon's talent.
One of NASCAR maverick owners put an offer onthe table. Rick Hendrick wanted to sign the kid to drive for an expanded team in 1993. Ford officials were scared. They'd lose a special talent to their biggest rival, Chevrolet.

In OTL Stewart made it public that he was looking at Gordon around 1991 to consider having his son's team campaign him in British Formula Three. Gordon turned him down. He wanted to stay in the states.

ITTL, Jackie Stewart made the offer and Gordon jumped on it. Driving for Paul Stewart Racing, he was a solid 4th place in the standings in the British Formula Three Series in 1993. In 1994, he moved up to F3000 and was 3rd in in the standings with 4 series victory. Gordon also did an impressive set of tests with the new Stewart/Tyrrell in 1994.

The stage was set for Stewart/Tyrrell Grand Prix '95.
The drivers were veteran Brazillian Rubens Barrichello ,and American rookie Jeff Gordon.

However, before Gordon began his Formula 1 journey, Ford had an idea to get some buzz for him in America. They entered Jeff Gordon in 1995 Daytona 500, driving a third entry for the successful Yates-Kulwicki-Allison Racing Team. YKA was leading a period of Ford dominance in NASCAR, and Jeff Gordon added his name to it.

Gordon won his Twin 125-mile qualifying heat and started 3rd in the grid. On race day, Gordon led 127 laps and passed Sterling Marlin on the final lap to win the 1995 Daytona 500.
The next week Gordon was participating in the final F1 Preseason test at Estoril, Portugal, and there was a lot of buzz generated.

At first, at lot of European fans looked down their nose on the American, and his pedigree on dusty backwater dirt tracks.

But people who knew racing and knew history saw the stuff of past American grand prix stars in Jeff Gordon.

"This kid lacks the sense of entitlement that plagued Michael Andretti. He has the raw Mozart-like talent Salieris like Eddie Cheever or John Paul Jr. could only dream of. Dismiss this young American at your peril. You just may find yourself with egg on your face, like a few NASCAR experts did after Daytona." -- Nigel Roebuck in Autosport..March 13, 1995

Gordon learned quickly in 1995 and 1996, and it came together 1997. The Stewart/Tyrrell-Ford package was close to the level of the dominant Jordan package and ahead of the Ferrari, Williams and Prost EuroFrance teams.

Jeff Gordon and Michael Schumacher waged a pitched confrontation around the world, that ended with Schumacher trying to crash him in the season's final race at the 1997 European Grand Prix. Gordon fought off Schumacher and won the championship. It was a victory not just for Gordon or Stewart or Ford, but it was another sign that the growing push to develop talent that was fostered by Mercedes works. Ford put more into their driver development programmes as a result.

And the Ford development program in the UK, got news of a special kid in Stevenhage around the time Jeff Gordon was starting out.

As Jeff Gordon rose, so did this young British kid, and the youngster became a fan of the rookie from America.
They met at a karting award banquet where Jackie was presenting in 1995. The confident ten-year-old introduced himself...

"Hi, I'm Lewis Hamilton...and I want to drive for you someday Mr. Stewart and want to be your teammate, Mr. Gordon."

When Gordon clinched the 1997 championship, this kid was watching on BBC 1, hearing Murray Walker sing his praises. (ITTL The Beeb never lost the Television Contract)

The Tyrrell Tradition Continues!!!!! Stewart, Cevert, Rosberg, Mansell...and now you can add an American flavor, Jeff Gordon!!!

Jackie Stewart never forgot the kid and neither did Jeff Gordon. In 1998, Ford Motor Company and small investment firm called Gordon-Evernham Enterprises starting giving technical and financial support to a young, black kid in Stevenhage with dreams of hope and glory.

The rest was history.

At the season opening Australian Grand Prix in 2007, Jeff Gordon started in position #2 on the grid.

Lewis Hamilton, Gordon's teammate, was on the pole position. :)

"How does Prodrive get a team? In OTL they only considered having one if it had been legal to buy a Mclaren car lock stock and barrel.

1. David Richards didn't try to "cheat" ITTL. He pulled his rally people together, got together with some knowledgable F1 people trying to get Lotus F1 going again and in 1999 started working on designs from an F1 project.

2. Find somebody with deep pockets and big ambitions....Deep pockets? Big Ambitions? It seems the people who own Lotus have those things.

The next thing you know, David Richards is at a corporate office in Kuala Lumpur.

Deep pocket and big ambition, thy name is "Proton".

British know-how+ Malaysian money=what BAR could have been :)
Prodrive was on the grid in 2002 and was surprisingly solid. In 2004, the had become much like OTL Brawn GP, thanks to a lot of rules uncertainty. Richards' team found the loopholes and ProDrive-Proton found it had a competitive advantage.

This is why Damon Hill wants the next Eccelstone-Balestre Agreement to be air tight. The big teams hate loopholes. That hasn't stopped Prodrive Lotus-Proton from being competitive, but they are still straining to find someone that can carry them back to the top.

And what happened to Red Bull?
ITTL, Red Bull put the PR dollars in rallying and X-games exclusively. They didn't think they'd get as a big a bang for their Euro in Formula 1.

Sebastian Vettel would still get to F1, anyway. Danke Schon, Mercedes Benz.
Vettel came through the Mercedes development program, and was their next golden boy. Michael Schumacher was one of the people who looked at him early on, and there are many more to come according to Schumacher, who now runs the Mercedes Driver Development Programme.

He was pretty golden in 2010. He won 10 races enroute to a runway championship season that has Eddie Jordan very happy, but also has Ferrari, Tyrrell, Super Aguri, Prodrive Lotus...and everybody else in Formula 1 going back to the drawing boards.

AdA

December 4th, 2011, 08:43 PM

Ferrari is reliable from 68 and Amon wins the title, looses to Stewart in 69, but wins Back to back titles in 70 and 71.

Stateless

December 4th, 2011, 09:34 PM

First off, nice to see an F1 timeline!

One question is, how, with a POD of 1950 (presumably earlier), do you have quite so much convergence between OTL and TTL. While I appreciate the champions are different, the drivers winning world championships are the same people (presumably identical) to OTL. Strict butterflies should mean that champions from at least Tiff Needell onward won't be born, at least not as the same person they were OTL. But I can understand why you've been loose on it, so it's not a big issue.

What I really want to ask is, why are there seemingly so few fatal accidents ITTL? In OTL a driver racing in the 50s, 60s and 70s stood a high chance of dying in a race, and Peter Collins, Wolfgang von Trips, Jochen Rindt and Piers Courage are just some of the famous names that lost their lives in Formula One in this period (by the way, if you haven't, watch the BBC4 documentary 'Grand Prix: The Killer Years' - just make sure you're feeling strong before you do, it gets me every time). Do these drivers still die, or do others die in their place? If so, who? If not, what effect does this have on the sport? Does F1 still have its black weekend in 1994 or an alt-equivalent? OTL, the fatalities have been instrumental in getting safety measures brought in. Would you see this ATL as being more or less safe than OTL?

Look forward to hearing more from you.

MWC6707

December 5th, 2011, 01:07 AM

I love this timeline especially Jordan F1 still around I take it Nigel didn't crash in Japan in 87 and beat Piquet. I am a huge Mansell fan so I'm kinda curious to know what happened between 87-93 Who did he go to? Did he win the Indy Car title in 93 etc.

Chipperback

December 5th, 2011, 03:24 AM

"What I really want to ask is, why are there seemingly so few fatal accidents ITTL? In OTL a driver racing in the 50s, 60s and 70s stood a high chance of dying in a race, and Peter Collins, Wolfgang von Trips, Jochen Rindt and Piers Courage are just some of the famous names that lost their lives in Formula One in this period (by the way, if you haven't, watch the BBC4 documentary 'Grand Prix: The Killer Years' - just make sure you're feeling strong before you do, it gets me every time). Do these drivers still die, or do others die in their place?

It just that the more of the legendary drivers escaped the Reaper in this timeline. Clark, Senna, Cevert..all escaped the reaper.

Any not to mention those who got so beat up in a race car that they didn't drive again. Clay Raggazzoni. Alan Jones. Jacques Laffitte. Martin Donnelly. Sandro Nannini. Satoru Nakajima.

And not just in Formula 1. The photos of Eddie Sachs death at Indianapolis in 1965 still resonate. Gordon Johncock's fiery crash at Indy in 1973. Joe Weatherly's death during the 1966 Daytona 500. Bobby Issac and Tiny Lund dying in a 15-car pileup at the 1973 Talladega 500.

"what effect does this have on the sport? Does F1 still have its black weekend in 1994 or an alt-equivalent?

South African Grand Prix 1971-1977 -- The old Kylami circuit killed at least a driver a year for six straight years. The 1974 race was the deadliest weekend, four drivers killed in the weekend, and 3 other drivers in protest of the lack of response in terms of marshalling corner workers withdrew from the race...including the man who would be '74 champion, Francois Cevert. From that weekend on..Cevert truly took up the mantle of his mentor Jackie Stewart as a advocate for greater driver safety.

Canadian Grand Prix 1982. Riccardo Paletti died in the race. Rene Arnoux was so badly injured that he never made another start in so much as a go kart again.

Hockenheim 1985 Didier Pironi killed during qualifying. Alain Prost seriously injured both feet in an accident..He would miss the '86 season but return after successful "Rick Mears Surgery" to a fine year in 1987 driving for Ligier.

And then Monaco 1994.. No deaths, but Karl Wendlinger, Roland Ratzenberger, Pedro Paulo Diniz and Alex Caffi certainly wished they'd stayed in bed. All four scratched for the season...But they could have been worse

And I haven't even gotten into Group B Rallying yet ;)

the fatalities have been instrumental in getting safety measures brought in.

In this timeline it began with fatalities, but a real emphasis on it began thanks to the FISA-FOCA split and the "Declaration of Drivers' Rights and Responsibilities" that the Grand Prix Drivers Association pushed to include in the 1983 Eccelstone-Balestre Agreement.

"Drivers In Formula 1 have the right to compete in an environment where the safety of competitors, support staff and our fans is of paramount importance. We as Drivers have the right to refuse to compete in any arena where we do not feel safety is of paramount importance."

What happened was a series of reforms. The biggest came from an idea from 1982 Formula Two Champion Jonathan Palmer, who was also a licensed physician. The idea centered around a full-time medical staff under the supervision of the Chief Medical Delegate (who is the same person ITTL as in the OTL. Professor Sid Watkins) who would travel to the races, maintain tighter correlation with the personal physicians of competitors and build a network of medical professionals at every stop and nation on the tour for rapid response and long-term health care.

This system to contacts was bolstered further by the same F1 alum who ended up brokering the peace that ended the FISA-FOCA conflict. Dan Gurney, who among the first to introduce safety measures such as full-face helmets and a cockpit extinguisher system (developed in cooperation with Bill Simpson). Gurney set up lines of communication between F1's medical staff and the travelling medical staff for Championship Auto Racing Teams (IndyCar's governing body). The exchange of information between the sides was a boon to driver safety in the 1980s.

The programme bared its first fruit with Alain Prost's ugly accident at Montreal in 1985. Both feet were pulverized after a high speed impact. However, Professor Watkins and staff had a link with a specialist in the United States who had pioneered a procedure to deal with such an injury. It had already saved the careers of Rick Mears and Rocky Moran.

Three days after the incident, Dr. Terry Trammel completed a successful surgery on Alain Prost's feet. Prost was back in an F1 car in 1987...and later that season carded a win.

The Prost incident also led to a "De-Armco" campaign and a look at alternative wall technologies. CART in the U.S. was looking at the same thing.

The GPDA, FOCA and CART began working with scientific institutes worldwide to focus on better boundary systems, and all were active working with manufacturers of safety equipment.

The additional emphasis on safety, and funding being put behind by the teams and major sponsors accelerated the introduction of a number of lifesaving devices. By 1988, less cumbersome, more effective extinguisher system was in every F1 cockpit.

In 1989, Simpson began producing the Head And Neck Support (HANS) Device, and F1 teams begin experimental studies with it. The system, based on a idea by a biomechanical engineer, became mandatory in Formula 1 and CART competitors starting with the 1991 season. NASCAR began using them in 1993, after a violent 1992 season that saw five contending drivers nursing injuries during the season due to crashes.

The next big step came with Jackie Stewart's entry into Formula 1 in 1994. Whereas the raised cockpit safety capsule would be mandatory in 1995, Stewart's 1994 SF01 was built with the raised cockpit in place, and Stewart urged other constructors to put in the safety feature now. Frank Williams listened to him and had the FW16 redesigned with the raised cockpit.

On May 1, 1994 on the Tamborello sweeper at the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari, Imola, Italy...Ayrton Senna rear suspension degraded at 205 miles per hour. The car skittered across the gravel trap and impacted the wall on the side of the track..

In impact a shard of carbon fiber from the front suspension broke and projected on a arc toward the cockpit...The suspension piece was deflected away from the driver by the raised barrier around the driver.

Ayrton Senna had bruised ribs and got his wind knocked out. He was grimacing as her got out of the car. Partly from pan and breathlessness, partly from the frustration of having the car break while leading the race.

Ayrton Senna walked away, and at the end of the season was celebrating his third World Drivers' Championship.

But Senna wasn't happy about how hard he hit the wall, and he let Bernie Eccelstone and Max Mosley know.

In 1997, that area of the track was protected by a new technology called Steel and Foam Energy Reduction (SAFER) The American-developed SAFER system (developed with pride at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln ;)) was showing up at tracks in the United States already and Formula 1 began using them with a eye toward every F1 venue having SAFER barriers by 2004.

But there is the other side. The push for safety also was a boon for track design. With racing getting safer, drivers in better shape, the old school race track was the vogue. Old circuits like Spa-Francochamps, Paul Ricard, Zandvoort, Kylami, Montjuich, Scadinavian Raceway, Osterreichring and Watkins Glen were back in style. Old Nurburgring even went under a total makeover to bring the track up to current F1 safety standards. The Grand Prix of the European Union is ran at the good ol' Ring. The newer venues such as Sepang and Shanghai were designed to race and feel like the tracks of the 60s, but have 21st century safety and hospitality.

A delicate balance has been struck, but Drivers are wary. They want to put on a great show, but you don't want another year of busted up bodies like 2000 and 2001, where it seemed a lot of drivers spent more time in the neurosurgeon's office. That's a major sticking point of the next Eccelstone-Balestre Agreement, the drivers want the old school tracks to put more safety features in or get those track out of the series.

It just that the more of the legendary drivers escaped the Reaper in this timeline. Clark, Senna, Cevert..all escaped the reaper.

And thank God for that. I can imagine Senna, being one of the most legendary sportsmen in his country period, being a big save. And you missed a big American loss in an F1 car in that list (hopefully on purpose....) - Mark Donohue. Am I guessing a good F1 career through the 70s and a long list of IMSA and NASCAR successes in the 80s awaits?

Any not to mention those who got so beat up in a race car that they didn't drive again. Clay Raggazzoni. Alan Jones. Jacques Laffitte. Martin Donnelly. Sandro Nannini. Satoru Nakajima.

And not just in Formula 1. The photos of Eddie Sachs death at Indianapolis in 1965 still resonate. Gordon Johncock's fiery crash at Indy in 1973. Joe Weatherly's death during the 1966 Daytona 500. Bobby Issac and Tiny Lund dying in a 15-car pileup at the 1973 Talladega 500.

Does your mentions of accidents in the 60s and 70s mean that some guys are not lost in the 80s? Joachim Winkelhock doesn't bite it in a Porsche 956 at Mosport in 1985, Nobody has to clean up pieces of Gordon Smiley's brain at Indy in 1982? (That's a true story - Dr. Trammel commented in his book about seeing gray material on the track after Smiley's crash.) Good things, I hope.

South African Grand Prix 1971-1977 -- The old Kylami circuit killed at least a driver a year for six straight years. The 1974 race was the deadliest weekend, four drivers killed in the weekend, and 3 other drivers in protest of the lack of response in terms of marshalling corner workers withdrew from the race...including the man who would be '74 champion, Francois Cevert. From that weekend on..Cevert truly took up the mantle of his mentor Jackie Stewart as a advocate for greater driver safety.

Kyalami in this world must just be cursed. The track layout of the original Kyalami (keep in mind it was rebuilt in 1986 to make way for a housing development, only the stretch from Jukskei to before Leeukop survived) was quite good for safety, with huge runoff areas. Price's death was caused by a foolish track marshal who got pulped by his car. The new layout is better from a driver's perspective, or so says my old man, whose driven both layouts. :)

And then Monaco 1994.. No deaths, but Karl Wendlinger, Roland Ratzenberger, Pedro Paulo Diniz and Alex Caffi certainly wished they'd stayed in bed. All four scratched for the season...But they could have been worse

What happened here, pile up in front of the Casino? Somebody end up in the Mediterranean again?

And I haven't even gotten into Group B Rallying yet ;)

Group B was insane as it was because of having effectively no rules and racing at places they had no business doing so, like Corsica, or places with non-existent crowd control, like Portugal. Group B could have been fantastically exciting had it lasted into 1987-88, with Toyota's MR2-based effort entering, the Ford RS200 and Rover Metro 6R4 maturing into something, perhaps Porsche bringing the 959 into the game, Mitsubishi with the Starion, Citroen's BX 4TC, perhaps a GM entry into Group B rallying.... One can see the appeal, though they needed to get them out of places like Corsica which were death traps for such insane automobiles.

In this timeline it began with fatalities, but a real emphasis on it began thanks to the FISA-FOCA split and the "Declaration of Drivers' Rights and Responsibilities" that the Grand Prix Drivers Association pushed to include in the 1983 Eccelstone-Balestre Agreement.

A good idea, that, though the owners of some tracks are gonna fight like hell to not have it exist at all.

What happened was a series of reforms. The biggest came from an idea from 1982 Formula Two Champion Jonathan Palmer, who was also a licensed physician. The idea centered around a full-time medical staff under the supervision of the Chief Medical Delegate (who is the same person ITTL as in the OTL. Professor Sid Watkins) who would travel to the races, maintain tighter correlation with the personal physicians of competitors and build a network of medical professionals at every stop and nation on the tour for rapid response and long-term health care.

This system to contacts was bolstered further by the same F1 alum who ended up brokering the peace that ended the FISA-FOCA conflict. Dan Gurney, who among the first to introduce safety measures such as full-face helmets and a cockpit extinguisher system (developed in cooperation with Bill Simpson). Gurney set up lines of communication between F1's medical staff and the travelling medical staff for Championship Auto Racing Teams (IndyCar's governing body). The exchange of information between the sides was a boon to driver safety in the 1980s.

The programme bared its first fruit with Alain Prost's ugly accident at Montreal in 1985. Both feet were pulverized after a high speed impact. However, Professor Watkins and staff had a link with a specialist in the United States who had pioneered a procedure to deal with such an injury. It had already saved the careers of Rick Mears and Rocky Moran.

Three days after the incident, Dr. Terry Trammel completed a successful surgery on Alain Prost's feet. Prost was back in an F1 car in 1987...and later that season carded a win.

The Prost incident also led to a "De-Armco" campaign and a look at alternative wall technologies. CART in the U.S. was looking at the same thing.

The GPDA, FOCA and CART began working with scientific institutes worldwide to focus on better boundary systems, and all were active working with manufacturers of safety equipment.

The additional emphasis on safety, and funding being put behind by the teams and major sponsors accelerated the introduction of a number of lifesaving devices. By 1988, less cumbersome, more effective extinguisher system was in every F1 cockpit.

In 1989, Simpson began producing the Head And Neck Support (HANS) Device, and F1 teams begin experimental studies with it. The system, based on a idea by a biomechanical engineer, became mandatory in Formula 1 and CART competitors starting with the 1991 season. NASCAR began using them in 1993, after a violent 1992 season that saw five contending drivers nursing injuries during the season due to crashes.

The next big step came with Jackie Stewart's entry into Formula 1 in 1994. Whereas the raised cockpit safety capsule would be mandatory in 1995, Stewart's 1994 SF01 was built with the raised cockpit in place, and Stewart urged other constructors to put in the safety feature now. Frank Williams listened to him and had the FW16 redesigned with the raised cockpit.

On May 1, 1994 on the Tamborello sweeper at the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari, Imola, Italy...Ayrton Senna rear suspension degraded at 205 miles per hour. The car skittered across the gravel trap and impacted the wall on the side of the track..

In impact a shard of carbon fiber from the front suspension broke and projected on a arc toward the cockpit...The suspension piece was deflected away from the driver by the raised barrier around the driver.

Ayrton Senna had bruised ribs and got his wind knocked out. He was grimacing as her got out of the car. Partly from pan and breathlessness, partly from the frustration of having the car break while leading the race.

Ayrton Senna walked away, and at the end of the season was celebrating his third World Drivers' Championship.

But Senna wasn't happy about how hard he hit the wall, and he let Bernie Eccelstone and Max Mosley know.

In 1997, that area of the track was protected by a new technology called Steel and Foam Energy Reduction (SAFER) The American-developed SAFER system (developed with pride at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln ;)) was showing up at tracks in the United States already and Formula 1 began using them with a eye toward every F1 venue having SAFER barriers by 2004.[/quote]

Good moves, all of them.

But there is the other side. The push for safety also was a boon for track design. With racing getting safer, drivers in better shape, the old school race track was the vogue. Old circuits like Spa-Francochamps, Paul Ricard, Zandvoort, Kylami, Montjuich, Scadinavian Raceway, Osterreichring and Watkins Glen were back in style. Old Nurburgring even went under a total makeover to bring the track up to current F1 safety standards. The Grand Prix of the European Union is ran at the good ol' Ring. The newer venues such as Sepang and Shanghai were designed to race and feel like the tracks of the 60s, but have 21st century safety and hospitality.

Wait, wait, hold up. You have the Nurburgring, the 13-mile, 169-corner track that Jackie Stewart affectionately called "The Green Hell", back on the F1 calendar? Bloody hell, you have been ambitious. Making the place safe for F1 cars would have to include junking the Flugplatz and rebuilding the Plfantzgarten section so that cars CAN NOT get airborne. In a modern F1 car, airborne means no downforce, and the hard landing tosses cars out of control instantly, and in the case of the latter with nasty results.

If you want a great place for a race in Scandinavia, the Gotland Ring in Sweden is your answer. Spa, Kyalami, Zandvoort (a Dutch GP with Belgium and Germany so close by? Interesting....), Watkins Glen and the Osterreichring can all be brought back, though the Osterreichring isn't a great circuit for competition (too narrow) and I'd imagine you'd end up with too many races in Europe. With Americans regularly involved in F1, South Africa back (or never having left) and the inevitable races in India and China, along with all of the European rounds you'd probably be really pushing it for a schedule.

Chipperback

December 5th, 2011, 12:47 PM

"And you missed a big American loss in an F1 car in that list (hopefully on purpose....) - Mark Donohue.

Mark Donahue did have a nasty crash in practice at the 1975 Grand Prix of Austria, but thanks to the hardened carbon fiber cockpit and special molded safety seat in the Penske PC-5MD that he designed, Donahue walked away, got in the backup car and put the backup car on the pole.

The next day, Mark Donahue won the '75 Austrian Grand Prix and set fastest lap that Sunday Afternoon at the Osterreichring.

ITTL Mark Donahue is a man who greatly influenced American racing and the American auto industry for the better. From improving engineering of our cars in the 1970s and 1980s, to alternative fuel research now, Mark Donahue is a living proof that the racing improves the automotive breed.

His resume is filled with on-track accomplishment. Two Indianapolis 500 victories ('71, '73)
Two USAC National Championships ('73 and '74)
1977 Can-Am Champion.
Two-time overall winner at LeMans. Six-time class winner at LeMans.
A member of the first team to sweep the "The 72-hour Triple Crown" (1982 -- along with Derek Bell and Hans Stuck, they won Daytona, LeMans and Fuji in a Rothmans Porsche 956)

In 1978, Donahue ran limited schedules in the racing season and devoted more time to building the automotive design firm he started in 1976, Mark Donahue Engineering. In 1979 American Motors Corporation came to MDE looking for new ideas. Donahue's progressive theories on race car design, many of which where outlined in his 1976 book, The Unfair Advantage , found their way into AMC's entire passenger car line by 1981. America's 4th automaker became its most innovative over the next 5 years. AMC was the first American automaker to introduce multivalve overhead cam engines, variable valve timing, cab-forward design, advanced aerodynamics, and was instrumental in bringing clean diesel technology to the marketplace.

"American Motors Corporation with half the budget of the Big Three, they are doing more to give American cars a proud image in the automotive world than the stagnant Big Three could begin to imagine. This shouldn't be too surprising, because AMC's design team has an Unfair Advantage" -- David E. Davis Jr. Automobile Magazine, 1985

There was even talk of Donahue taking over AMC. That didn't happen. AMC, as innovative as they were, was cash poor and 46% of the company was owned by Renault.

But a new future was dawning for American Motors and Mark Donahue. Thanks to probably the most famous and flamboyant corporate chief in American History.

Chrysler, despite a racing heritage stretching back to the 1920s, was pretty much of out of motor racing when Lee Iacocca took over in 1978. The company that gave motor racing the 300, the Superbird and Richard Petty's dominant STP Chargers, needed every penny to stay afloat.

What saved the company was a series of loan guarantees instituted in 1981. Over the objections of then-President John Anderson, Congress approved the loan guarantees and thanks to the development of two key projects, The K-Car Series and the T115 "Mini-Max" line of minivans, Chrysler went from hurting to healthy. In March 1985, Iacocca happily handed President Walter Mondale a check for the final loan repayment.

The problem was that the Chrysler Pentastar had been out of any major form of the sport in more than a decade. Iacocca, who was part of Ford's go-go racing efforts in the 1960s wanted Chrsylers, Dodge and Plymouths back on the speedways. The person who could get him there was plotting to get AMC back on the track after a 6 year absence.

In 1986 Iacocca made an offer to buy American Motors, and one of the biggest reasons he said later was to acquire the design firm that was making AMC stand out in the marketplace.

"It was foolhardy if you think about it rationally. To put all that money into racing. But I was smitten. I remembered Ford in the 1960s and how we push to be the best. Chrsyler needed this to fire our passion for our product, but our auto industry needed this as a whole. America needed compete against the world's best again. Our auto industry had been too insular for too long. Mark Donahue understood, and that's why I was confident to make the investment." -- Lee Iacocca in his book Lead, Follow Or Get Out Of The Way (Bantam Books, 2002)

The sale was completed by March 9, 1987 and part of the deal was an offer Donahue couldn't refuse. Chrysler would buy MDE and Donahue would oversee all of Chrysler's Motorsports activities.

Donahue took the challenge, and immediately got to work.

He began with what he knew best, IMSA endurance racing. Working with Chrysler's design department, he penned a new version of the Dodge Daytona for 1988 that would conform to IMSA GTO regulations. The car would be powered by a 32-valve V-8 originally developed at AMC.

Despite early teething problems, Elliott Forbes-Robinson scored 3 wins with the Daytona. Iacocca was so pleased and overwhelmed that he announced that his company would undergo a name change:

"In 1978, Chrysler was on the brink. We survived through ingenuity and sacrifice. However, we needed new blood, and fresh ideas to turn our survival into success. In 1986 we began bringing in that new blood with the acquisition of American Motors Corporation. The innovation that AMC's people brought to Chrysler is the catalyst for our success, and you can see that in the excitement they've brought to our product line. Just a few days ago, a Dodge Daytona racing car won its third IMSA race of the season at Riverside. It was proud to see. But that car was the child of Mark Donahue, the head of our Mopar Performance and Motorsports Division. Donahue, before he came to us was a part of AMC. That winning car is a sign of a special heritage of the American car that I feel should never be forgotten. Effective immediately, this company will be known as Chrysler American Motors Corporation. All of our sales and marketing efforts going forward will reflect this change." -- Lee Iacocca, November 1988.

161190

The Daytona program was just a beginning. In 1989 Chrysler-AMC worked with Lambourghini to build a car for IMSA GTP and FIA World Endurance Group C competition. The result was the 1990 C12 "Patriot". It went through the development gremlins in 1990, but in 1991 and 1992 it was a very competitive car, and winning the Silverstone 1000km, Monza 1000km, and the Hermanos Rodriguez 1000km in 1991. The greatest win for the car was the first 24-hour win for an American manufacturer in 24 hours years. A C12 piloted by the team of Danny Sullivan, Ron Fellows and Hurley Haywood won the 24 Hours of Fuji in 1992.

Did I just say "gremlin" back there? Speaking of them..The Gremlin nameplate is still around. In this case is it a car similar in size to the OTL Dodge Neon, but it has the soul of the Lancia Delta Integrale. That was Donahue's next project. An affordable All-Wheel-Drive compact that could be used for competitive rallying. The Gremlin dominated the U.S. Pro Rally Championship in 1991 in an undefeated season. In some very capable Scandinavian hands, the Gremlin became a threat in the World Rally Championship over the next four years even through the doubters around the world. When Chrysler first got into rallying you could hear laughter from Bristol to Hiroshima, by 1993 no one at Mistubishi, Mazda, Audi, Lancia, Porsche, Proton, Subaru, Citroen or Ford were laughing. The Yanks and their funny-named, cute little rally car were winning.

In 1995, The car people once laughed at got the last laugh. Finland's Jyrki Järvilehto won the World Rally Championship in a Gremlin R/T 4WD with four victories in the season and only 1 finish outside of the podium. The championship sent already brisk sales soaring and the special "J.J. Lehto" editions of the Gremlin are highly sought-after cars for collectors today.

As the rally and endurance teams became competitive, Lee Iacocca looked to a big target in the USA. He wanted Chrysler-AMC back at the Daytona 500.

Donahue had designed the car for the job. Chrsyler's newest coupe, which shared a nameplate with a car that won three NASCAR championships back in the 1970s.

The Matador would return to the racetrack.

In October 1992, Donahue took a trip down to Reading, Pennsylvania for a meeting with Roger Penske(2) and Richard Petty.

Donahue showed them the schematics for the next Dodge Matador R/T. It looked fast. There was a gleam in the eyes of The Captain and The King...They signed on that weekend, and a 500-day march to the 1994 Daytona 500 began.

During Speedweeks 1993, Chrysler made the announcement.

"At this time next year, You'll see our see our new Dodge Matador R/T Hemi Daytonas battling the Thunderbirds and Luminas here. And I'm picking our cars because we have the Unfair Advantage on our side. If you can find a better car, ROOT FOR IT!" --Lee Iacocca, February 1993

The 1994 Daytona 500's front row was pole-sitter Rusty Wallace with Kyle Petty next to him.

Both of them driving Dodge Matador Daytona R/Ts

It wasn't any easy climb. 1994 was a tough season, success didn't come until later in the year. Bob Keselowski, a longtime campaigner of Chrsyler cars in the ARCA series, brought his privateer team to victory lane at the Mello Yello 500 at Charlotte Motor Speedway in a Dodge Matador. It was a surprising, popular win. The photo of Keselowski in victory lane in tears with his young son is one of the great moments in NASCAR.

That little kid in victory lane with his dad is well-known these days. Brad Keselowski won the 2010 NASCAR Nationwide Series championship in the snazzy Dodge Javelin. He finished 3rd in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Chase for the Championship in his #2 Penske Lite Beer Dodge Matador in 2011. He's on the short list of Cup contenders for 2012.

The Daytona dream finally happened in 1996. Kyle Petty, driving the #43 STP Dodge Matador brought a Daytona 500 win back to Level Cross. The following year, Newburgh, Maine's Ricky Craven put another Petty Dodge Matador into victory lane at Daytona. He won nine more races that year and ended the year as your NASCAR Winston Cup Champion.

After Iacocca stepped down as Chairman of Chrsyler-AMC in 1999, Bob Lutz took over and immediately promoted Donahue to the #2 slot. Chrsyler was now a company firmly in the hands of engineers. Donahue still oversees Chrsyler-AMC Motorsports, which is a more exciting job now. Donahue's design team developed a KERS device that now a staple in both Formula 1 and CART IndyCar competition. Another team is working with NASCAR to develop the fuel injection system for the Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series.

The most exciting projects are the first joint efforts in Chrysler-AMC's strategic alliance with Italy's FIAT. Highland Park and Turin are working together on the next evolution of the Gremlin R/T WRC car (a road-going AWD Gremlin Abarth will be at your Chrysler and FIAT studios in May 2012), and they are building the LMP-1 SuperPatriot Abarth, A hybrid twin-turbodiesel/electric prototype for the 2012 24-Hours of LeMans.

Among the test drivers of the "SuperPatriot" is the "Lil' Advantage", 3-time IMSA American LeMans Champion David Donahue, Mark's son.

(1) Lido Anthony Iacocca OTL was a signifcant part of American motorsports, and ITTL his impact was even greater..and that was before he got to Chrysler.
(2) Roger Penske: Because America Should Run Up Front (Paid for Americans for Penske)

* Yoachim I., who happens to be my first cousin, profoundly frightened and impressed the operator of an upscale go-kart facility where 16-year-old Yoachim had won, in a summer-camp contest, several sessions at. My brother and I were there. Within half an hour, not only had he lapped the other karts several times, but the rear tires of the kart were smoldering and threatening to put him flat onto the rims.
When the facility manager approached my cousin with fire in his eyes, I had thought, well, that was fun, we'll be evicted in Three, Two, One... But I was mistaken.
Yoachim emerged from the office with his face struck with wonder and awe. His first words to us, "Don't you dare pinch me! Whatever you do! I want this to last!"
From one friend of a friend to another, starting with the kart-track operator who owned a Ferrari dealership and reaching to sacred Modena itself, within two years my rough and ready cousin was trembling with glee and on the starting grid for Ferrari's own F1 team.
He scored second place that day, and in fury, he tossed his helmet onto the track and refused to appear on the podium.
That year was his first as Driver's Champion.
It was not his last.
After five years as champion, Yoachim met the other love of his life, got her pregnant, and married her. To facilitate domesticity state-side, Yoachim easily landed a spot on a NASCAR team and easily dominated that sport for the next twelve years. He then "retired" and opened his own custom-auto shop in Fort Lauderdale, often taking a hands-on role with creating extreme vehicles. (My brother and I share five of them!)
(Incidentally, he still holds the unofficial record for Fort Lee, NJ to JFK Airport: 15 minutes.)

Bedhead

December 5th, 2011, 06:31 PM

Okay...Bedhead...I'm always up to make changes...where would Hunt land...what year would he win if not with Lord Alexander..

Oh, and could he leave the women alone?:D

Have a good idea for a change?...I'm all for it..and I'll change it, if its good. I already did once :)

Where Hunt lands depends entirely on what Hesketh does, I could see Hesketh staying in F1 using Lord Heskeths shameless flying of the Union Jack to attract decent sponsorship and Bubbles Horsley luring Gordon Murray from Brabham with a fistful of cash, they use Murrays connections to get Alfa flat 12 engines and they build a proper ground effect car for 1978 driven by the dream team of James Hunt and Ronnie Peterson, Hunt cruises to an easy championship with teammate Peterson and Andretti at Lotus his only rivals, However Peterson, although friends with Hunt, is not happy about being seen as the number 2 driver and makes his displeasure felt and leaves to join Williams. Hunt is joined by a young Nelson Piquet, who is immediately on the pace and pushes Hunt down to third in the WDC standings, with Scheckter taking the title for Ferrari.

In a surprise move, Hunt jumps ship to Renault for 1980, where he gets his first taste of driving a turbocharged car, and quickly becomes popular with the team and the female population of France, after a season of good results punctuated with car failures, he decides to give it one more year and is joined by the young Alain Prost for 1981.

Prost immediately takes over the brunt of development work of the RE30, although he is beset by bad luck over the course of the year leaving a rejuvinated Hunt to take the title, the first driver to win the WDC in both a turbocharged and normally aspirated car.

For 1982, Hunt, now a dedicated Francophile, decides to try and win back to back titles, a wealthy man, he thinks that one more year to cement his finances means he can retire to Monte Carlo while he's still young enough to enjoy it.

In a tough year, Hunt is challenged right up to the final race by Rosberg, Pironi and Watson with Prost once more suffering the bad luck for the year, after winning his third and final championship and being the most successful driver ever, he leaves Renault and retires to the life of a Playboy.:)

What this version of things relies on, is James Hunt not throwing the head up and retiring early, Hunt was an bit of a puzzle, a man who could punch a rival without hesitation, yet be devoted to his dog, a well educated man who could do some extraordinarily stupid things if the urge took him.

It's safe to say there will never be another James Hunt, and the single title he secured was a poor reflection on his talent. :)

Keep him away from the women? No chance! :D:D:D:D:D

Chipperback

December 5th, 2011, 07:07 PM

Bedhead, this sound fun..but it would need its own timeline.

Hmm...I'm going to play this out..
A rivalry between James Hunt...and the anti-James Hunt....one of my favorite drivers, the Original "Street Fighter" -- John Watson. :)

TheMann

December 5th, 2011, 07:56 PM

I'm thinking this for the post-1986 Group B World Rally Championship....

1987-88

After the deaths of Henri Toivonen and Sergio Cresto on the 1986 Tour de Corse and Marc Surer's co-driver in a high-profile televised accident in Germany resulted in major changes to the events Group B ran. Unwilling to kill the whole category, the class was booted off of tarmac rallies for 1987, and automatic fire extinguisher systems and fuel cells were mandated for all cars - the latter many figuring may have been enough to save Toivonen and Cresto. Lancia's Delta S4 was removed from the scene after 1986, with Lancia felling the car, which had killed no less than five drivers and co-drivers, was simply too dangerous to continue to use. Lancia instead brought out the 041, a variant of the 037 fitted with the same engine and four-wheel-drive system as the Delta S4. The 041's teething troubles kept Lancia from a high position in the 1987 WRC.

Toyota and Porsche entered the full 1987 WRC, respectively with the MR2 based Toyota 222B and Porsche with the 959-based 961. The 1987 series saw the race at Corsica restricted to Group A cars, and new events in Japan and Australia added to the schedule. Citroen's BX 4TC only ran the first six rounds before Citroen gave up on the car, finding it too big and heavy to be competitive. By contrast, the agile 222B and astoundingly-powerful 961 were successful right off the bat, and Porsche's wundercar started off its career with an unlikely win in the hands of American rally legend John Buffum at Monte Carlo. Toyota, maintaining its long-held dominance in the rallies in Africa, won both the legendary Safari Rally in Kenya and the rally in the Ivory Coast. Buffum scored a second win for the 961 at the Olympus Rally in the United States. Audi's factory team was absent for all of 1987, though several private entries stayed in the fight, and while none of them won a rally, they did have some points successes. The Peugeot 205 T16 as the fastest car in 1987, and despite only managing to win four of the 13 events, and Juha Kankkunen walked away with the 1987 WRC title.

For 1988, things got rather more serious still. Audi was back with a turbocharged V6-powered Quattro, and Ford sent the RS200 out with a seven-speed gearbox and the same Cosworth four-pot engine as the RS Cosworth road car, but with rather more power. Despite that, Lancia's 041 scored first blood in Monte Carlo in the hands of Bruno Saby, who managed the win in large part due to Buffum's crashing out and the Ford RS200s, who were stupid quick early, both suffering spectacular engine failures. The surprise was the second-place finisher - a Ferrari F40, privately entered by Italian racers Jolly Club and with Ferrari approving, and them doubly approving after the two-wheel-drive F40 was proven to be amazingly good at Monte Carlo. It is said that Enzo Ferrari himself was pleased at the news of the F40 doing well in Monte Carlo. The F40's surprises weren't done yet - it did well in several rallies in 1988, managing to survive for fifth place in the Safari Rally and sixth at the Acropolis, by which time two more F40s were on the circuit. But the kicker came when the F40 came out victorious in a crash-filled round in Argentina in the hands of Hannu Mikkola - ironically, the last win in any race for Ferrari before Enzo Ferrari died eight days later. The F40 didn't race in 1989, but the car's 1988 successes proved with no doubts that Ferrari and rallying could indeed mix.

The rest of the season was no less full of surprises. Audi got off to a slow start but did well as the season went on. Peugeot's now-aging 205 Turbo 16 kept evolving, but by now the Ford RS200s and Toyota 222R2s were the speed demons of the bunch, with the Rover Metro 6R4 proving to be as reliable as granite but not fast enough to challenge the leaders, a young Scotsman by the name of Colin McRae, who made his debut for the Metro 6R4 factory squad in 1988, tended to challenge that view. By the end of the season, Ford had at long last come out victorious in the WRC in the Group B era, though they claimed the manufacturer's title over Toyota by just two points. Audi was in the ascendant, however, and Peugeot, Porsche and Ferrari had proven capable. The successes of the sport had drawn the attention of others, too, and so 1989 would see new arrivals, new cars, and some of the biggest thrills and spills in the history of the WRC....

President Al Bundy

December 5th, 2011, 09:29 PM

POD: Nigel Mansell's tire doesn't blow up at the 1986 Australian Grand Prix, thus giving him that year's world championship.

[1]Having already won a world championship, Mansell doesn't have that much pressure all year. He doesn't have his accident in Suzuka, and as Piquet's car fails him in the last two races of the season, and with Mansell winning both races, he wins his 2nd world championship.
[2]Honda stayed with Williams, and because Senna has always been Honda's favorite son, he's now racing for Williams. As his team-mate and biggest contender Mansell suffers from chickenpox during the season, Senna can easily sweep the 1988 world championship.
[3]Prost profits from various squarrels Mansell and Senna have throughout the season (Imagine OTLs 1989 Japanese Grand Prix, and add 2-3 more incidents ITTL), and wins the first championship for Renault's new 3.5l engine.
[4]With Mansell gone to Ferrari, Senna is the clear #1 at the team and wins that year's championship.
[5]The Williams-Honda FW14B is even more dominant than IOTL, thanks to the Honda V12. But this should be Ayrton's last championship, as he leaves Formula One after the 1993 season, to race in the IndyCar Series, where he meets his old nemesis Nigel Mansell.
[6]Despite the Williams FW15C having superior driver aids, Prost profits from the higher power of his Renault engine, as Williams is stuck with Ford V8 engines.
[7]Prost collected more points than Schumacher in that season, plus he doesn't have the collision with him at Adelaide Damon Hill had IOTL. But this was to be Alain's last world championship, as he retires from Formula One.
[8]Alesi proved to be the most consistent driver that year, which had up to 10 championship contenders. The Williams team of Hill/Alesi, Mclaren-Renault with Schumacher/Häkkinen, Benetton-Renault with Frentzen/Barrichello as well as Ferrari with Jacques Villeneuve and his team-mate Nicola Larini.
[9]Despite having the weaker Mecachrome-engine, Mika Häkkinen wins his only world championship for BMW, thanks to Adrian Newey's superior creation, the Mclaren MP4/13. Still, they had to fight hard against Williams and Ferrari.
[10]Schumacher doesn't have his accident at Silverstone, and easily wins the championship.
[11]After years of hard work by the trio of Jean Todt, Ross Brawn and Jacques Villeneuve, the latter wins the world championship his father never could. The world championship for Ferrari. The most iconic scene of Formula One history is an openly weeping Villeneuve on the podium at Malaysian Grand Prix in 2000.
[12]It's roughly like OTL, only with Montoya having more luck ITTL.
[13]The Ferrari F2004 is as dominant as IOTL, and Raikkonen easily wins the championship.
[14]Fernando Alonso decides to stay with Renault, which results in winning the 2007 championship.
[15]Instead of Alonso, Button comes to Mclaren and wins the championship in his first year, thanks to his clever driving style of saving fuel and tyres.
[16]Perhaps the largest butterfly of TTL. ITTL, Wheldon has enough funds to continue racing in Europe. He arrives at Formula One in the early 2000's, eventually replacing Button at Honda in 2007. After two atrocious years, BrawnGP is founded as IOTL, and Wheldon manages to win his 1st world championship.
[17]ITTL, BMW doesn't pull the plug on Formula One and they are rewarded with Hamilton's world championship victory in 2010.
[18]Just like OTL.

While the butterflies aren't that large for Formula One, is has some interesting effects on IndyCar and sportscar racing. For example, both Mercedes and BMW stay much longer in sportscar racing, thus having great battles with Audi, Porsche, Panoz and Corvette (They eventually develop a LMGTP version of the Corvette) in the IMSA Rolex GT Championship. Also, IndyCar stays unified and competes eye-on-eye with Formula One.

Chipperback

December 5th, 2011, 09:34 PM

Now why is McLaren getting stuck with the customer engines?

Bedhead

December 5th, 2011, 10:15 PM

I'll tell you a true story about Group B.

When I was 10, which would have been 1985, My uncle drove a very quick Vauxhall Viva which had a tuned up 2.3 Firenza engine in it, this thing would leave 2.8i Capris and V8 Rovers for dead, it was a very quick car.

Anyway, it was the night before the Circuit of Ireland rally and I was in the passenger seat of this Capri coming across the Queens Bridge in Belfast with my Uncle when he suddenly drops a gear and takes off like a bat out of hell, next thing there's a growl and this Quattro rally car goes past us like we're sitting still and goes into the bend at the Short Strand in a full 4 wheel drift, drifts the whole way round until it's heading back into the town centre and disappears like a missile. To this day, I've never seen any car as quick or as well controlled.

We found out later it was Michele Mouton taking one of the local press for a bit of a demo run.

To say I was impressed was a bit of an understatement, it's one of my most vivid childhood memories!:D

Chipperback

December 5th, 2011, 10:25 PM

"We found out later it was Michele Mouton taking one of the local press for a bit of a demo run."

That must have been a sight to see :)
I miss watching Group B rallying. We used to get the highlights over here maybe a week afterward. Those cars were incredible.

A few year ago I got to see my favorite rally car up close. Ford RS200...I'd pay any cost to own one of those or a real Audi Quattro, I'd pay double of Michele Mouton was driving it :)

Bedhead

December 5th, 2011, 11:08 PM

The RS200 was an awesome car, it was first shown in public at the Belfast motor show, after Group B finished, there were "evolution" versions that were supposed to have someting like 700bhp!

For a favourite rally car, it has to be an Escort G3, a Mk3/4 Escort converted to RWD.

A note on list...Since I've gone off the danged reservation anyway...If you have a POD on any racing major series....Put it up here...It could be F1, WRC, World Endurance Championship (or whatever they called that these days. Endurance racing has so many names)..I'll even go as far as BTCC or DTM...

The only rule here... 1. No plutonium-powered race cars or "Jetsons mobiles" and 2. Include notes for any points of divergence

BONUS Points for anybody with an FIM-MotoGP list :)

modelcitizen

December 6th, 2011, 02:46 AM

I'll tell you a true story about Group B.

When I was 10, which would have been 1985, My uncle drove a very quick Vauxhall Viva which had a tuned up 2.3 Firenza engine in it, this thing would leave 2.8i Capris and V8 Rovers for dead, it was a very quick car.

Anyway, it was the night before the Circuit of Ireland rally and I was in the passenger seat of this Capri coming across the Queens Bridge in Belfast with my Uncle when he suddenly drops a gear and takes off like a bat out of hell, next thing there's a growl and this Quattro rally car goes past us like we're sitting still and goes into the bend at the Short Strand in a full 4 wheel drift, drifts the whole way round until it's heading back into the town centre and disappears like a missile. To this day, I've never seen any car as quick or as well controlled.

We found out later it was Michele Mouton taking one of the local press for a bit of a demo run.

To say I was impressed was a bit of an understatement, it's one of my most vivid childhood memories!:D

awesome!!!

President Al Bundy

December 6th, 2011, 11:02 AM

Now why is McLaren getting stuck with the customer engines?

IOTL, Honda abandoned their partnership with Williams after the loss of the 1986 F1 World Championship. ITTL, Honda stays with Williams, and it would have been foolish to leave the team after they won two consecutive world championships. Honda also supplied another team, Lotus, but that was only because Senna was driving for them in '87 (He was after all Honda's favorite son), and because they gave Satoru Nakajima a seat (He was perhaps Honda's 2nd favorite son). Given that Honda perhaps had only the capacities to supply two teams, Mclaren wouldn't have had Honda engines. Besides, in 1989 and 1990, only Mclaren had Honda engines IOTL. ITTL, it's Williams.

While the Gordan Murray engineered MP4/4 still manages to win 1-2 races, it's stuck with Judd engines, which have less power than the Honda turbos in '88. In 1989, Mclaren decides to pick the next best choice for an engine, the new Renault 3.5l V10 engine. Alain Prost drives for Mclaren after all, and after Mansell and Senna steal each other valuable points, Prost's clever driving brings him the championship.

Renault pulls the plug on F1 like IOTL after the 1997 season, leaving Mclaren with customer engines indeed. But Adrian Newey is also ITTL with Mclaren, thus bringing Mclaren still the championships in '98 and '99 (Just like Red Bull IOTL). By this point, BMW is already preparing their F1 engine, which becomes available in 2000. However, Mclaren and BMW were already collaborating in sportscar racing. IOTL, BMW supplied the 6.0l V12 engine for the Mclaren F1 road car, which also saw success in GT racing. ITTL, BMW and Mclaren develop another evolution model of the F1, called "F1 GTP", to compete against Mercedes and Porsche in the FIA GT Championship, as well as to tackle Le Mans. Mercedes on the other hand develops their Le Mans racer in conjunction with Williams (Think OTLs V12 LMR, but with a Mercedes grill, a roof and some more adjustments to make it look like a road model.). Since Mercedes and BMW stay in sportscar racing much longer, Porsche also develops their proposed LMP1 racer, because they can afford to miss racing against their competiton. Thus, Mercedes, BMW, Audi, Porsche, as well as Panoz and Cadillac/Corvette field works teams in the ALMS (Corvette takes over from Cadillac somewhere 2004ish).

Long story short, Mclaren becomes sort of a BMW factory team, while Williams becomes a Mercedes factory team (Thus no MercedesGP ITTL).

(1) Ferrari does the sensible thing and gives Stirling a lot of money. This means he will not have his career ending crash.
(2) The Cosworth is ready ealier and is reliable earlier.
(3) Stupid death in F2 cars are allways a good place to use a life saving
butterfly
(4) The 312B is reliable from the start, the man was fast, and lotus points were divided between Clarck, on his final year, and Rindt, who didn't died, Clarck having warned Chapman not to try that setup at Monza.
(5) The Amon Stewart duels made this one of the best years ever.
(6) Still alive, and faster than ever in the revamped 72
(7) Best driver on the best car. Fantastic oposition from Stewart, but the Lotus 72 is faster
(8) The Rat is consistente earlier on.
(9) The Rat doesn't park is 312 at suzuka and his after crash tittle makes him le... (wait for it)...gendary
(10) With the 79 Rindt dominates the field (10 wins and 12 poles) he retires at the end of the year.
(11) No Reutman at Ferrari in 77, its Nikki and Regga to the end. Gilles goes to Williams, dominates Jones at seasons end, and will be the dominant driver in 80,81 and 82...

TheMann

December 6th, 2011, 02:54 PM

1989

The World Rally Championship entered 1989 after a wild 1988, with a hard-fought title between Ford and Toyota coming out in the Americans' favor and Audi and Porsche in the ascendant, and Peugeot announcing a new Group B car for 1989, which came out as the 405 Turbo 16. Renault with the 405 T16 went for a big twin-turbocharged V6 engine inside the slightly larger 405 body, aiming for the same weight class as the Porsche 961 and the Audi Quattro X4. Ford had a higher-boost version of the Cosworth engine for the RS200 and benefitted from the light weight. The Toyota 222R3 was the lightest of all, aiming for the 1.4-liter turbo category and a subsequently lighter weight.

The series kicked off in Monte Carlo, and another pavement victory for Bruno Saby, now at the wheel of an RS200, though with John Buffum in the 961 and Ari Vatanen's Quattro X4 on his heels. Vatanen didn't take long to score his first win, that coming in round two in Sweden. A mark of things to come came at Sweden when Stig Blomqvist's 405 T16 went off the road at over a hundred miles per hour and flew off the road, disintegrating on impact with a number of trees. Blomqvist and co-driver Thomas Ansando suffered only minor injuries, but by now the speed of the Group B cars was approaching freightening levels, with the fastest cars having in excess of 650 horsepower and accelerating from a standstill to 200 km/h in around six seconds. The snowbanks of sweden caught dozens of drivers nearing disaster, but the third round was to nail the point home.

Round 3 was in Canada, starting from the city of Toronto and going north to the city of Sudbury, along snow-covered roads. The rally's practice events started the rough days, when Walter Rorhl crashed his Lancia 041 in spectacular fashion on a practice stage, crashing off the road into a stand of trees and landing in a farm barn. Rorhl suffered four broken ribs, a broken leg and a skull fracture in the crash, but he recovered enough to finish the event. But halfway through the event, Canadian privateer Terrence "Terry" Belkins and co-driver Adam Leavett lost control of their Peugeot 205 T16 on the eighth stage, slamming into a large tree at over 150 km/h, which destroyed the Peugeot's front section, and the tree subsequently fell onto the Peugeot before fire consumed it. Despite quick emergency response, Belkins died immediately, Leavett died on the way to the hospital in Toronto. On the fourteenth stage, north of the town of MacTier, disaster struck again, this time involving the Audi of Michele Mouton and the Porsche of John Buffum, when the two close-together cars crashed after Mouton struck a rock face. Buffum, racing around a blind corner, piled into Mouton's wrecked Audi at over 140 km/h, launching the Audi into a double roll and breaking the chassis in half. The co-drivers of both cars died in the crash, while Mouton suffered a broken neck that required four surgeries to fix and Buffum suffered severe chest injuries. The organizers ran the event on at the request of the teams, which caused the event's fifth fatality just outside Sudbury when the Mazda RX-7 of Kerry McWilliams and Dan Blake ran off the road and crashed into a house, killing McWilliams instantly and critically injuring a fan in the rented house.

The weekend, which resulted in five deaths and six critical injuries, was the end of Group B. The FIA had been watching the awesome speed of the cars, and after the horrifying crash Blomqvist suffered in Sweden and the weekend from hell in Canada, the end came. By the time of round four, the Olympus Rally in the United States, the FIA had decreed that the Group B class would end at the end of 1989. But what was proposed instead of that was, if anything, better than Group B.

The rules for 1990 would be made up of three classes, the top two counting towards the WRC. Group S, Group S2 and Group A were the plan. Group S had the wild designs of the Group B cars, but required just twenty examples to be built to allow for innovation, but limited the cars to 350 horsepower - less than half of the 1989 frontrunners. Group S2 allowed up to 450 horsepower, but S2 was restricted to two-wheel-drive cars, and the FIA's intention - and they had no problems saying so - was to allow super sportscars to take to the rally stages and be competitive, like with the F40s that shocked the rally world in 1988. Group A would also be allowed 350 horsepower, but they needed 5000 examples built to get homologation and as they had to be based on production models, they were expected to be slower than the Group S and S2 machines. The new cars' would allow extra innovations, and the feeling was that the less power would give better advantage to the smaller cars - which Peugeot, who had just switched from the diminutive 205 to the bigger 405, did not like much. Porsche and Audi were also against, for the same reason. Lancia, Toyota, Ford and newcomers BMW were for it wholeheartedly, Lancia being the first to announce their 1990 entry, beating Toyota to the punch by a week.

1989 went on with the championship now being the last great hurrah of the insane "Killer Bs", and all of the competitors aimed to win it. The Safari Rally fell to Ford's Mark Lovell, with the Toyota Celica 240RS of Hiroshi Matsuoka taking the runner up after the much faster 222R3s all were unable to survive to the finish of the grueling Kenyan event. Audi, despite losing the services of their number two driver, soldiered on and won the events in New Zealand and Australia, the latter won by local hero Peter Brock, his first WRC victory at the wheel of his Quattro X4. Ari Vatanen's win in New Zealand and subsequent win in Argentina allowed him to build up a commanding points lead - but by mid-season, Peugeot had the 405's kinks sorted out, and the bright-yellow Pugs proved nearly unstoppable. Toyota and Ford's efforts were laudable, but aside from a lucky win by Matsuoka in the Ivory Coast in a 222R3, the latter half of 1989 boiled down to a straight duel between Audi and Peugeot. In the end, consistency by Vatanen was enough, and he walked away as the 1989 WRC champion, and Audi took the manufacturer's title from Toyota.

WRC Driver's Champion: Ari Vatanen
WRC Manufacturer's Champion: Audi

1990

The first year for the new, three-class WRC saw new arrivals Subaru, Mitsubishi and BMW come ready for war. Lancia announced a two-pronged attack, with the Delta S4-based ECV taking Lancia's flag in Group S and the Delta Integrale running in the Group A category. Ford brought a less-powerful but wider-tracked version of the RS200, Toyota a new rally car based on the then-new SW20 series MR2 holding up their flag in Group S and the Celica GT-Four in the Group A category. Audi chose to leave as champs and Porsche focused its efforts exclusively on the Paris-Dakar rally and defending its sportscar accomplishments. Mazda was the only entirely-new entry into the Group S ranks, fielding a variant of the then-new FD-series RX-7. General Motors was the first entry into the Group S2 category, with the Corvette World Rally team being the first S2 competitor. BMW also entered Group S2, with a BMW M3 powered by a 2.1-liter turbocharged engine using much of their F1-derived turbo technology. Ferrari and the Jolly Club were also back with a pair of F40s which ran the whole series, and the Lancia of Italy dealer team ran a 037 in the 1990 WRC. Peugeot chose to enter Group S2 as well, with a two-wheel-drive variant of the 405 powered by the wailing 3.5-liter V12 from Peugeot's 905 Le Mans car, the car named the 405 VR2, while the fans came to affectionately call it "The Yellow Screamer" for its paint and the V12's high-pitched engine note. Despite Porsche's being out of the factory business, three private teams entered the whole series with 964-series 911s. Nissan and Subaru began in Group A with the Nissan Pulsar GTI-R and the Subaru Legacy Turbo. Ford was also in Group A with the Sierra RS Cosworth, and several Audi 80 Quattros ran in the 1990 WRC in the Group A category.

Right from the start, it was clear that the higher power of the S2 cars could make them competitive, so the stakes started high and stayed there. Gilles Panizzi's Peugeot's wailing 405 VR2 spent much of the rally locked in a desperate fight with young Scotsman Colin McRae in the second Corvette World Rally team car, the huge American musclecar not being laughed at after McRae was leading the rally after SS3. The fastest S cars were the RS200s of Eric Petersen and Ari Vatanen, but on the relatively-clear stretches of the 1990 Monte Carlo Rally meant the higher-powered cars had the edge. Panizzi went away with the win, but the tables were turned in Sweden, when Vatanen and Petersen led a Ford 1-2. Returning to Canada after the devastating 1989 Rally Ontario, the event went off without a hitch, and better still, Michele Mouton drove her RS200 to a wildly-popular win at the event she had suffered so much pain at the year before. Better still, local racers Frank and Dan Sprongl drove their Audi 90 Quattro to the Group A win. The event went off without a single hitch and was well-attended. The same true of the Olympus, where the Lancia ECV scored its first victory in the hands of Juha Kankkunen. The round in Japan was the first win for GM's factory effort, as the faster, mostly-paved roads of Rally Japan suited the Corvettes very well, and McRae left Japan with his first WRC victory - it would be the only win for the 1990 Corvette Rally Team, as GM's factory effort moved to a Group S version of the Opel Calibra for 1991.

The harsh Safari Rally was the first and only time a Group A car won outright in 1990, with Hiroshi Masuoka's Toyota Celica GT-Four coming out with the overall victory. The hot Acropolis Rally was another test of reliability, with the best survivor being the Ford RS200 of Malcolm Wilson. Carlos Sainz scored Toyota's first win of 1990 in New Zealand, making it two in a row and taking over the points lead after Toyota's 1-2-3 in Australia, with Sainz leading home local hero Peter "Possum" Bourne and Armin Schwarz in the three SW20 RS2 cars. Toyota's victory in Argentina put them solidly in the manufacturer's points lead, but Lancia struck back in Finland, with Juha Kankkunen taking the win after the Ford RS200 of fellow Finn Hannu Mikkola lost drive on the second to last stage. Returning to Italy for the third-to-last round, Toyota's points lead was such that Lancia or Ford had to win to keep in the title chase, and this Lancia did, this time with Didier Auriol taking the win from teammate Miki Biasion. The Corvette of Colin McRae and the Ferrari F40 of Ian Duncan were the surprise contenders of the rally, and while McRae crashed out on SS12, Duncan made it an Italian 1-2-3 at their home event, and the first podium for the F40 in 1990.

As usual, the rally in the Ivory Coast was a complete crapshoot, though the African rally drivers and the Paris-Dakar veterans, as usual, did very well on the rough roads of West Africa. An abysmal attrition rate meant that 56 starters only gave 16 finishers, the worst attrition rate of the year - and the survivor for the win was Kenjiro Shinozuka, in an old Toyota 222 fitted with the engine from SW20 RS2. As the Ivory Coast did not count for manufacturer points, the Group S and Group A titles, as well as the Group S driver's championship, would be settled in Britain.

The RAC rally settled to a straight fight between Carlos Sainz's Toyota SW20 and Juha Kankkunen's Lancia ECV, though Colin McRae's Corvette and the Ari Vatanen's Peugeot 405 VR2 made them work for it. Sainz came out on top, and with it Toyota earned their second WRC Manufacturer's title. Sainz's win also secured the driver's title for him. McRae's class win wasn't enough for him to take the Group S2 driver's title, though the Corvette team did defeat the Peugeots and BMW for the Makes championship. In Group A, the roles were reversed - the Delta Integrale was the better of the rally cars, and Dario Cerrato came away with that title. Better still, 1990 was the first year without a competitor fatality since 1983, good news indeed for all involved.

(1) Ascari would live well into his 80s, became a beloved Grand Prix commentator for RAI Italia much like Murray Walker in OTL

(2) Sterling Moss is one of only three men who has won the Formula 1 Championship and the Indianapolis 500 in the same year. Joining Jim Clark (’65) and A.J. Foyt (’77). Moss, at age 92, is still alive and well…and get still racing! Moss won a round in the Thermex Historic Touring Car Championship in the ‘11 and had 4 other podium finishes. He plans to contest the year and he’s will test to get a competition license for the Spa and Silverstone 24-hour events.

(3) Wolfgang von Trips was one of the most revered F1 drivers in the world. His personna and charm made the Tifosi go wild and he started the list og German drivers who would win the World Championship. He was the one who Micheal Schumacher said that was his hero. His visit to the East Germany in 1989 was said to be impactful and it is said to have had effect in breaking down the wall.

(4) A.J. Foyt was brought into Lotus along with Mario Andretti to form “Colin Chapman’s American Dream Team” which developed the groundbreaking Lotus 78 and Lotus 79.

(5) The Tigress of Turin is the first woman to win a Grand Prix (she did that in ‘75), and 1979 she shocked everybody with 3 wins in a wild championship season that came down to the final race. She is one of six women who has won a Formula 1 Grand Prix. Other winners: Divina Gallica (’81), Michele Mouton (’85), Victoria Butler-Henderson (’95), Vanina Ickx (’01), Sarah Fischer ('07), Katherine Legge (’10), it is expected that Danica Patrick will join this list as she joins Lewis Hamilton at Stewart/Tyrrell in 2012.

(6) Due to an impasse on a number of issue Federation du Sport Automobile and Formula One Constructors Association run separate Formula 1 seasons
(7) Bernie and Jean-Marie couldn't work out their differences
(8) "You'll sooner see Margaret Thatcher in her bed riding Arthur Scargill than seeing a united Grand Prix Championship" -- James Hunt during a BBC "Grand Prix" broacast, 1982. "James...I don't even want to think about that," Murray Walker, 1982.

(9) PEACE IS IN OUR TIME! The 1983 Eccelstone-Balestre Agreement ends the FISA-FOCA War opening to door to a great 1983 season and Gilles Villenueve winning a unified title. Under the terms of the agreement, the 1980, 1981 and 1982 winners of both series are consider official “World Drivers Champions” in the record books.

Oh and Gilles Villenueve. Lives back in Bethierville, Quebec Canada. He's an agent to a number of drivers, including his son Jacques, who is a 2-time Indianapolis 500 winner and an 11-time Grand Prix winner. Villenueve is also president of Speedway Canada Ltd, which is the marketing and organizing arm of the Grand Prix of Canada in addition to administering the site of the Grand Prix of Canada, Circuit Rene Lesvesque in Montreal.

(10) The last turbo season.

(11) The first season under the 1989 Eccelstone-Balestre Agreement calling for a 3.5 liter Engine formula allowing Engines up to 12 cylinders. Porsche’s innovative W-12 was formidable as Bellof nipped Senna to win the championship and the left the team cited Senna’s constant polickticking and complaining.

(12) Taking the seat for a vacated Nigel Mansell, who left for IndyCar after contentious contract dispute, Kamikaze Uyko has a 6-win dream season to be the first Japanese World Champion.

(13) The 26-year old American was the first World Champ from the USA since ’78, and would leave F1 after the 2009 season as the winningest American driver in Formula 1 history. Gordon is semiretired from racing (he still competes at Indianapolis, Daytona and LeMans), a happy husband to his actress wife Keeley Hawes-Gordon, and a father of two. Next year, you'll hear him giving his commentary as part of the BBC's broadcast team for the F1 coverage in 2012 and Americans will get to see him, too! Formula One Administration Chairman Damon Hill announced this week that BBC America has been awarded the U.S. broadcast rights for Formula 1 for the next four years.

Oh by the way...Where is Damon? Graham's son is considered "The greatest man on 2 wheels, PERIOD". Hill is a 16-time motorcycle world champion, and led the transition into the MotoGP format. Hill was tapped to replace Bernie Eccelstone as chairman of the FOA after Eccelstone was indicted on allegations of securities fraud.

(14) He was Flat Out. He wasn’t Flat Broke..and yes, he is the Stig ITTL’s version of “Top Gear”

(15) Alex Zanardi has both his legs, and he’s starting his own F1 team in 2012. Scuderia Zanardi Rapide, with engines provided by Honda. His team drivers will be veteran Giancarlo Fischiella and GP2 Champion and former Indy 500 winner Marco Andretti.

(17) Taking advantage of some loopholes in the aerodynamics rules, Mark Webber and Peter Brock caught all of Formula 1 with their collective pants down like Braun GP did OTL.

(18) A dominant 10 win season as Vettel handed Eddie Jordan his sixth driver's title and an 8th Constructors Championship.

(19) The circus begins next March at Fuji, Japan at on of the world's highest tracks.. :)

(20) John Surtees is the only man to win world championships on 2 wheels and 4 wheels...Although a lot of people think Fernando Alonso may seriously threaten to turn the trick after a great MotoGP season in 2011. ;)

(21) Known as the Iceman, the Finn took billionaire Vijay Mallya's team McLaren-BMW to their first Championship. This team was initially started in 1966 and became defunct after the 1996 season but was restarted by Vijay Mallya in 2007 and in its second year back it won the drivers and the constructors championships with Kimi Raikonnen and Sarah Fischer.

Screvier20

December 7th, 2011, 04:34 AM

Mark Donahue did have a nasty crash in practice at the 1975 Grand Prix of Austria, but thanks to the hardened carbon fiber cockpit and special molded safety seat in the Penske PC-5MD that he designed, Donahue walked away, got in the backup car and put the backup car on the pole.

The next day, Mark Donahue won the '75 Austrian Grand Prix and set fastest lap that Sunday Afternoon at the Osterreichring.

ITTL Mark Donahue is a man who greatly influenced American racing and the American auto industry for the better. From improving engineering of our cars in the 1970s and 1980s, to alternative fuel research now, Mark Donahue is a living proof that the racing improves the automotive breed.

His resume is filled with on-track accomplishment. Two Indianapolis 500 victories ('71, '73)
Two USAC National Championships ('73 and '74)
1977 Can-Am Champion.
Two-time overall winner at LeMans. Six-time class winner at LeMans.
A member of the first team to sweep the "The 72-hour Triple Crown" (1982 -- along with Derek Bell and Hans Stuck, they won Daytona, LeMans and Fuji in a Rothmans Porsche 956)

In 1978, Donahue ran limited schedules in the racing season and devoted more time to building the automotive design firm he started in 1976, Mark Donahue Engineering. In 1979 American Motors Corporation came to MDE looking for new ideas. Donahue's progressive theories on race car design, many of which where outlined in his 1976 book, The Unfair Advantage , found their way into AMC's entire passenger car line by 1981. America's 4th automaker became its most innovative over the next 5 years. AMC was the first American automaker to introduce multivalve overhead cam engines, variable valve timing, cab-forward design, advanced aerodynamics, and was instrumental in bringing clean diesel technology to the marketplace.

There was even talk of Donahue taking over AMC. That didn't happen. AMC, as innovative as they were, was cash poor and 46% of the company was owned by Renault.

But a new future was dawning for American Motors and Mark Donahue. Thanks to probably the most famous and flamboyant corporate chief in American History.

Chrysler, despite a racing heritage stretching back to the 1920s, was pretty much of out of motor racing when Lee Iacocca took over in 1978. The company that gave motor racing the 300, the Superbird and Richard Petty's dominant STP Chargers, needed every penny to stay afloat.

What saved the company was a series of loan guarantees instituted in 1981. Over the objections of then-President John Anderson, Congress approved the loan guarantees and thanks to the development of two key projects, The K-Car Series and the T115 "Mini-Max" line of minivans, Chrysler went from hurting to healthy. In March 1985, Iacocca happily handed President Walter Mondale a check for the final loan repayment.

The problem was that the Chrysler Pentastar had been out of any major form of the sport in more than a decade. Iacocca, who was part of Ford's go-go racing efforts in the 1960s wanted Chrsylers, Dodge and Plymouths back on the speedways. The person who could get him there was plotting to get AMC back on the track after a 6 year absence.

In 1986 Iacocca made a tender offer to buy American Motors, and one of the biggest reasons he said later was to acquire the design firm that was making AMC stand out in the marketplace.

The sale was completed by March 9, 1987 and part of the deal was an offer Donahue couldn't refuse. Chrysler would buy MDE and in turn Donahue would head of all Chrysler's Motorsports activities.

Donahue took the challenge, and immediately got to work.

Donahue began with what he knew best..IMSA. Working with Chrysler's design department, he penned a new version of the Dodge Daytona for 1988, that would conform to IMSA GTO regulations. The car would be powered by a 32-valve V-8 originally developed at AMC.

Despite early teething problems, Elliott Forbes-Robinson scored 3 wins with the Daytona. Iacocca was so pleased and overwhelmed that at the start of 1989, he announced that his company would undergo a name change:

The Daytona program was just a beginning. In 1989 Chrysler-AMC worked with Lambourghini to build a car for IMSA GTP and FIA World Endurance Group C competition. The result was the 1990 C12 "Patriot". It went through the development gremlins in 1990, but in 1991 and 1992 it was a very competitive car, and winning the Silverstone 1000km, Monza 1000km, and the Hermanos Rodriguez 1000km in 1991. The greatest win for the car was the first 24-hour win for an American manufacturer in 24 hours years. A C12 piloted by the team of Danny Sullivan, Ron Fellows and Hurley Haywood won the 24 Hours of Fuji in 1992.

Did I just say "gremlin" back there? Speaking of them..The Gremlin nameplate is still around. In this case is it a car similar in size to the OTL Dodge Neon, but it has the soul of the Lancia Delta Integrale. That was Donahue's next project. An affordable All-Wheel-Drive compact that could be used for competitive rallying. The Gremlin dominated the U.S. Pro Rally Championship in 1991 in an undefeated season. In some very capable Scandinavian hands became a threat in the World Rally Championship over the next four years even through the doubters around the world. When Chryslers first got into rallying you could hear laughter from Bristol to Hiroshima, by 1993 no one at Mistubishi, Audi, Lancia, Porsche, Proton or Subaru was laughing. The Yanks and their funny-named, cute rally car were winning.

In 1995, The car people once laughed at got the last laugh. Finland's Jyrki Järvilehto won the World Rally Championship in a Gremlin R/T 4WD with four victories in the season and only 1 finish outside of the podium. The championship sent already brisk sales soaring and the special "J.J. Lehto" editions of the Gremlin are highly sought-after cars for collectors today.

As the rally and endurance teams became competitive, Lee Iacocca looked to a big target in the USA. He wanted Chrysler-AMC back at the Daytona 500.

Donahue had designed the car for the job. Chrsyler's newest coupe, which shared a nameplate with a car that won three NASCAR championships back in the 1970s.

The Matador would return to the racetrack.

In October 1992, Donahue took a trip down to Reading, Pennsylvania for a meeting with Roger Penske(2) and Richard Petty.

Donahue showed them the schematics for the next Dodge Matador R/T. It looked fast. There was a gleam in the eyes of The Captain and The King...They signed on that weekend, and a 500-day march to the 1994 Daytona 500 began.

During Speedweeks 1993, Chrysler made the announcement.

The 1994 Daytona 500's front row was pole-sitter Rusty Wallace with Kyle Petty next to him.

Both of them driving Dodge Matador Daytona R/Ts

It wasn't any easy climb. 1994 was a tough season, success didn't come until later in the year. Bob Keselowski, a longtime campaigner of Chrsyler cars in the ARCA series, brought his privateer team to victory lane at the Mello Yello 500 at Charlotte Motor Speedway in a Dodge Matador. It was a surprising, popular win. The photo of Keselowski in victory lane in tears with his young son is one of the great moments in NASCAR.

That little kid in victory lane with his dad is well-known these days. Brad Keselowski won the 2010 NASCAR Nationwide Series championship in the snazzy Dodge Javelin. He finished 3rd in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Chase for the Championship in his #2 Penske Lite Beer Dodge Matador in 2011. He's on the short list of Cup contenders for 2012.

The Daytona dream finally happened in 1996. Kyle Petty, driving the #43 STP Dodge Matador brought a Daytona 500 win back to Level Cross. The following year, Newburgh, Maine's Ricky Craven put another Petty Dodge Matador into victory lane at Daytona. He won nine more races that year and ended the year as your NASCAR Winston Cup Champion.

After Iacocca stepped down as Chairman of Chrsyler-AMC in 1999, Bob Lutz took over and immediately promoted Donahue to the #2 slot. Chrsyler was now a company firmly in the hands of engineers. Donahue still oversees Chrsyler-AMC Motorsports, which is a more exciting job now. Donahue's design team developed a KERS device that now a staple in both Formula 1 and CART IndyCar competition. Another team is working with NASCAR to develop the fuel injection system for the Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series.

The most exciting projects are the first joint efforts in Chrysler-AMC's strategic alliance with Italy's FIAT. Highland Park and Turin are working together on the next evolution of the Gremlin R/T WRC car (a road-going AWD Gremlin Abarth will be at your Chrysler and FIAT studios in May 2012), and they are building the LMP-1 SuperPatriot Abarth, A hybrid twin-turbodiesel/electric prototype for the 2012 24-Hours of LeMans.

Among the test drivers of the "SuperPatriot" is the "Lil' Advantage", 3-time IMSA American LeMans Champion David Donahue, Mark's son.

(1) Lido Anthony Iacocca OTL was a signifcant part of American motorsports, and ITTL his impact was even greater..and that was before he got to Chrysler.
(2) Roger Penske: Because America Should Run Up Front (Paid for Americans for Penske)

I like that American Motors survives and becomes part of Chrysler. What bands does the Chrysler American Motors Corporation have Chrysler, Dodge, Plymouth, Eagle, and Jeep? I love Dodge's earlier return to NASCAR with Roger Penske and Richard Petty in 1994. Plus Kyle Petty winning the 1996 Daytona 500. And lastly NASCAR picking the HANS Device early.

Is there no way to save Vuky?:(:(:(
Dr. Ayrton Senna. Professor of Theology at the Pontifical Catholic University of São Paulo
:D:D:D IDK why, this really makes me laugh.

I'm also a bit dubious about Cooper being so successful. Not enough to disbelieve it, just not sure.

I'm liking this TL a lot!

BTW, with such good ideas, have a visit here (http://www.alternatehistory.com/Discussion/showthread.php?p=5334951). We can use you!

Chipperback

December 7th, 2011, 11:50 PM

Bill Vukovich didn't die in '55. He finished 3rd, but like most of the Offy field, they underestimated the guile of the Mercedes teams who played a shrewd fuel strategy early and then showed the W196s power late, along with a driver in Joie Ray who had a lot to prove that day.

Vukovich never won the 500 again, but he did close close on two other occasions. He also carded two additional AAA and later USAC national championships before retiring for good in 1967 to manage the careers of his son and grandson, who is a successful racing promoter today.

In his later years, Bill Vukovich still showed up every May. Always wanted to sign an autograph. Always around Gasoline Alley. And he always had a minute to hang out the "Alley Cats".

Bill Vukovich died on May 6, 2011, just a few days before another Month of May was set to open. A special memorial service was held on the morning before Pole Qualifying -- May 17, 2011. It was the largest Pole Qualifying crowd in Speedway history to say goodbye to one of Indianapolis' most loved competitors.

Chipperback

December 8th, 2011, 12:20 AM

Chrysler American Motors Corporation

The Chrysler-AMC Brands

Chrysler -- More personal luxury cars similar to the OTL

Plymouth -- Family, economy and hybrids. All the Mini-Max models are Plymouth

Dodge -- Performance division. Mopar or No Car, baby.

Jeep -- The SUV/Truck/Heavy-Duty division. The RAM pickup is a Jeep model here.

Plymouth Pacer -- A sportwagon comparable to a Subaru Legacy/Forester, available in 4WD, Flexfuel, Turbodiesel and Gas-Electric hybrid. A full-electric version will debut in 2014.

Dodge Gremlin -- A sporty compact purpose built for the World Rally Championship. The Dodge Gremlin R/T is an all out all-wheel-drive American Hachiroku that is a serious WRX/Lancer Evo killer. Due for a massive upgrade with a redesigned Chrysler-Lancia-Fiat engineered Dodge Gremlin R/T Abarth to debut June 1, 2012.

Dodge Matador -- Comes in a family sedan variant or in the sporty coupe..and don't forget about the Dodge Matador R/T, The NASCAR challenger.

FIAT Group-- This alliance began in 2009, and its bearing some serious fruits for both sides. The new Fiat 500 is selling extremely well, and Fiat badged Mini-Maxes have Renault running scared in the mini-van market in Italy.

Scuderia Abarth -- Abarth models will be sold in America for the first time in decades

Mitsubishi -- Chrysler never let go of the "Diamond-Star partnership" In fact it extended to give the Chrysler is strong footprint. There is a rivalry between the two partners in the World Rally Championship that has raged for nearly 20 years.

TheMann

December 8th, 2011, 05:33 AM

Mitsubishi -- Chrysler never let go of the "Diamond-Star partnership" In fact it extended to give the Chrysler is strong footprint. There is a rivalry between the two partners in the World Rally Championship that has raged for nearly 20 years.

I'll have to add Chrysler's arrival in the WRC soon then. Gremlin in Group A, or a custom-built model for Group S or S2?

TheMann

December 8th, 2011, 07:15 AM

1991

1991 opened with three new arrivals in the Group A ranks and a new one in Group S. The new arrivals in Group A were Chrysler's Gremlin R/T 4WD, Nissan's Pulsar GTI-R and Subaru's Legacy Turbo, all of them aiming to beat the Group A dominating Delta Integrale. Chrysler's Gremlin, which would dominate the 1991 United States ProRally Championship, was clearly the most polished of them though the Legacy Turbo was fast off the blocks. In Group S, Ford and Mazda replaced their cars, with Ford retiring the RS200 in favor of the Escort RS Cosworth and Mazda replacing the RX-7 with the Lantis X, a mid-engined supersedan. General Motors moved from Group S2 into Group S, replacing the Corvette with the Opel Calibra, while the Corvettes were sold to private owners. Peugeot's dominance in Group S2 didn't last, with BMW's improved 318i Turbo and Ferrari, who entered a team with factory support into the WRC for the first time in 1991, with the Jolly Club running two factory-developed Ferrari 348RCs for the full season.

They entered into a record-breaking season, with 18 rallies making up the 1991 WRC season - and all 18 counted towards all titles, ensuring the empty fields in the African rallies stopped cold. The season began in Monte Carlo, where the tight roads were uncharacteristically dry and free of ice, something which gave the edge to the S2 cars - and true to form, Ari Vatanen's Peugeot 405 VR3 won the rally, with the BMWs of Hannu Mikkola and Alain Bergeron finishing second and third. The Lancia ECV2 of Juha Kankkunen was the first Group S finisher, in fifth, with the Ferrari 348RC of Gustavo Trelles being the fourth-placed finisher. Those tables turned a 180 in Sweden. Kenneth Ericcson's Toyota SW20 came out victorious, with teammate Carlos Sainz in third, with Kankkunen between them. On to Canada for round three, and Frank and Dan Sprongl, who had won Group A there in their Audi 90 in 1990, had a tuned-up Porsche 961 with a later-model engine, and they had a cinderella run, leading every stage until a broken shift fork on the second to last stage handed the win to Kankkunen. The rally in Canada saw the first win of the year for Carlos Sainz's Toyota SW20, but the Group A winner was another story, that being the Chrysler Gremlin R/T 4WD driven by David Summerbell, the Jamaican outrunning all of the works Lancias, Toyotas and Mitsubishis.

The United States was more of the same as Canada, though the snow of Canada was replaced with the incredibly rain-soaked, muddy roads of the Olympus Rally. The Group S2s never had a prayer, and indeed both of the Ferraris, both of the Peugeots and Mikkola's BMW all didn't finish, leaving Alain Bergeron's BMW to claim the S2 win. This time, the agile Lancia outdid the faster Toyota, and Miki Biasion got his first win of 1991. Again, Summerbell claimed the Group A win in the Gremlin, a surprising win to say the least. Japan was round five, and this time the paved roads mixed with dirt sections, and for the first time in the year the Group S and S2 cars were on even terms. Carlos Sainz got his second win of the year in the Toyota, but Hannu Mikkola's BMW ran him hard right to the finish, them finishing an amazing fourteen minutes ahead of third-placed finisher Bruno Saby's Lancia. For the first seven stages, a truly-charging Colin McRae in the Opel Calibra kept the Lancia and the BMW close, but a blown engine on SS8 ended his day. By the time, everyone hit the dirt of Kenya for round six, the game was on, and while Ford, Mazda and Opel were chasing for Group S, it was clear that the WRC's Group S2 entries were for real.

Kenya was a punishing event, as usual. This time, Toyota's SW20s couldn't survive the African dirt - which surprised some, because Toyota had won this event in 1990 - and neither could the Lancias. Ford's Francois Delecour duly earn the Escort's first WRC win since 1980, with the Ford RS200 of Ian Duncan being the runner-up in his home event and giving Ford a one-two. Portugal was a closer event, with again the half-paved half-gravel event being a tossup, a tossup won by the Peugeot 405 VR3 of Markku Alen, with the Toyotas of Carlos Sainz and Armin Schwarz finishing second and third. The event was the first Group A win for Subaru for Possum Bourne at the wheel of his Legacy RS. Round eight was the return for Corsica to the schedule for the first time since 1986, and the paved rally again was a chance for the S2s to shine - which they did, with Didier Auriol scoring his first win of the year, and the first for BMW in the WRC. The Lancia ECV2 of Juha Kankkunen was the first Group S finisher in third, with the Peugeot 405VR2 of Vatanen being the P2 finisher. Gustavo Trelles and Gilles Panizzi both crashes their Ferrari 348s, and Mohammed bin Sulayem did the same with his privately-entered F40. Greece was round nine, and the nasty Acropolis Rally was again reliability event - and as with Kenya, Ford won it, this with Malcolm Wilson leading home Delecour, with Colin McRae finishing third in his Opel Calibra, which was starting to show speed. Greece was the end of the season for Toyota's Kenneth Ericcson, who was injured when his Toyota SW20 plunged down a hillside. Toyota signed up a fast-rising Group A driver, Tommi Makinen, to take over the second car.

Toyota's faith in Makinen was rewarded when he drove his SW20 to the win in New Zealand. Juha Kankkunen finished third, with a season-best third for Jesus Paras in his Mazda Lantis X. New Zealand's Group S2 win was taken by Vatanen's Peugeot, though that was after the BMW of Alain Bergeron crashed out. In Australia shortly after, to nobody's surprise, Carlos Sainz took his second win, though Makinen retired with four stages to go with a gearbox failure, leaving Biasion to grab second and Delecour to finish third in the Escort.

On to a hot Rally Argentina, and mechanical problems again slowed both Toyotas, and Kankkunen and Biasion took full advantage, racing to the win. The third for Colin McRae was his best event of the year at that point, and the third for McRae and fifth for Jorge Recalde was the first time both Calibras made it home of the year. Group S2 was won by the BMW of Hannu Mikkola, though Gustavo Trelles lost the win due to a poorly-timed navigational error on the third to last stage. Back to Europe for the 1000 Lakes Rally, and Kankkunen made it two in a row, with Timo Salonen's Escort being fairly close, and the 405 VR2 of Vatanen proving that Finns are tough to top on their home track. Makinen lost what looked like a win when he crashed out from the lead on SS10. Even Group A was won by a Finn, with Lasse Lampi's Galant VR-4 beating home JJ Lehto's Gremlin to the Group A win.

Round 14 at Sanremo was another victory for the Lancias, with Miki Biasion winning at his home rally. The second place for Carlos Sainz kept him in it. McRae got his second podium of the year, and the three stage wins for the aggressive young Scotsman and his getting-fast Calibra were proof GM meant business. The Ferrari 348RC of Gustavo Trelles led home the F40 of Piero Liatti, with only a last-minute charge by Ari Vatanen and his 405 stopping an Italian sweep of the S2 podium. The Integrales of Dario Cerrato and Andrea Aghini easily won Group A in Italy. Round 15 was the last new rally of 1991 in Germany, the all-pavement rally being the very devil for predictability, with crazy weather catching numerous guys out. The BMW of Hannu Mikkola came ahead in Germany overall, though the Escort of Francois Delecour and the Lancia of Juha Kankkunen also made it to the finish to finish second and third, with Ari Vatanen's 405 finishing fourth. Sainz's DNF and Makinen's mechanical problems cost Toyota dearly, giving them a big gap to make up in the final three rallies.

For the first time, all of the racers appeared for real in the Ivory Coast, and the African Rally proved to be a serious proving ground, just as Kenya had been. A rollover by Miki Biasion ended his hopes at the driver's title, but Kankkunen, despite problems of his own, managed to finish in third. Looking to make up the manufacturer's gap, saw the Toyotas finish 1-2, with Makinen leading Sainz across the line. For the only time in 1991, neither Calibra made it to finish, and Ford's Escorts both broke, leaving the fourth place to the Mazda Lantis of Jesus Paras, and fifth to the Ford RS200 of Ian Duncan. Nearly all of the S2 cars broke, leaving Ari Vatanen's 405 to finish over twenty minutes ahead of second place in S2, the Corvette of Patrick Tauziac. Group A was won by the Subaru of Patrick Njiru, a surprise win for the Kenyan rallier. Back to Europe for the final two rounds, and Toyota's slim chance at the manufacturer's title was ended by Miki Biasion's win in Spain, though the real story was the near-win by Jorge Recalde's Opel Calibra - he was only behind Biasion by eleven seconds at the end of the rally. Sainz's third put him back on top of the points table, but only ahead by Kankkunen by a single point. Possum Bourne's win in Group A with the Legacy RS locked up the Group A title for Subaru - something that had most certainly not been expected, though Dario Cerrato's second meant that he very nearly won the driver's title.

With all three drivers' titles and the S2 manufacturer's title to play for, the RAC rally was mayhem. It was also a watershed, as Malcolm Wilson finally won his home rally, though McRae made him work his ass off for it, the two drivers winning all but two stages of the 1991 RAC Rally. Juha Kankkunen's third place made him the World Champion for 1991, confirmed when Group S2 points leader Ari Vatanen crashed out, though his teammate Markku Alen settled the second straight S2 title for Peugeot by finishing second - the Ferrari of Gustavo Trelles coming out the S2 winner. Cerrato had DNF and Bourne win for the Subaru pilot to win the Group A title, and while Bourne did win, Cerrato finished third and thus won the WRC's Group A championship.

Bill Vukovich didn't die in '55. He finished 3rd
:cool::cool::cool: TYVM. That being true, why didn't he win another 500 or 2? My sense is (not being expert on his life by any means:rolleyes:), he was good enough to do it.

(1)Beauchamp beats Lee Petty and Tim Flock in a three-car dive at the finish.
(2)Dan Gurney celebrates his '62 Grand Prix championship with a great start to '63
(3)Back in 1964 Ned Jarrett suggested to Ford racing boss Lee Iacocca that if Ford was looking to sell more cars to an emerging African-American marketplace, they need to look at factory support for a talented, but broke privateer from Danville, Virginia named Wendell Scott. Iacocca listened closely and in 1965, Scott's privateer operation was very competitive including a race win at Jacksonville, Florida. In 1966 All-American Racers bought Wendell's team and made him a partner in the AAR NASCAR operation. Wendell immediately went out and got Dan Gurney's first race win as a team owner with a win on the dirt road course at Fonda, New York. He also followed up with wins at Texas World Speedway and Martinsville, Virginia. In 1968 Scott brought home a Daytona 500 win, 13 years after Joie Ray was the first African-American driver to win at Indianapolis.

(4) In response to Chrysler building their Charger Daytona/Superbird "Winged Warriors", Ford fought back with the Ford King Cobra/Mercury Super Cyclone. To develop the car they turned to Wendell Scott, who had the balls to try to drive the 200+ mile=per-hour missile. Being an former bootlegger driving fast without count consequences was nothing for Scott. In 1970 Scott took the Ford close to 200 mile-per-hour averages in practice. He led 116 of 200 laps on race day to win the fastest 500 mile race in history up to that point.

(5) Dodge got revenge in '71 as their "Wing Car" won. But NASCAR was worried about the escalating aero war in the sport. The "Winged Warriors" would be banned after the '71 season.

(6) The year was '72, and it was cool to be Brit in '72. Ziggy Stardust, Sweet,the Stones and the patched up Beatles owned the charts. American moviegoers loved "Live and Let Die" (Sean Connery back as James Bond, along with the best Bond Girl ever, done well by a tasty Diana Rigg) as they drove the cinemas in Capris and MGs..and a little candy bar called a Curly Wurly was sweeping the country..and sponsoring a race team for the Daytona 500 led by a Formula 1 refugee named Jackie Oliver who said. "I just wanted to try American racing for a little while." Well, all Jackie did was press the pace in the final 40 laps to outlast Richard Petty and Bobby Issac to win. It was the beginning of a very interesting decade that saw four Daytona 500 winners come from outside the United States.

(7) Before David Hobbs got behind a mic, he won the 2nd straight 500 for Team Curly Wurly.

(8) '74 NASCAR Rookie of the Year Earl Ross and Carling Brewery stayed in the Cup Chase and started off the sophomore season with the first Daytona 500 win for a Canadian.

(9) Richard Petty crashes across the finish line against David Person in the wildest NASCAR finish ever

(10) Again they bumped and bashed into the trioval. This time David Pearson spun across the finish line first.

(11) British Can-Am ace Brian Redman got the first Daytona 500 win for American Motors.

(12) A.J. Foyt solidifies his claim to being the best American racer ever. He's won Indianapolis, an F-1 championship and now Daytona 500 winner.

"And There's A Fight!" Yes, Ken Squier there was...after the race in Victory Lane as an upset Cale Yarbrough squared off with A.J. Foyt because Foyt ran him up the track in turn three on the final lap to make the winning pass. Yarbrough didn't like it and the punches flew. One of the signature moments of NASCAR on television, and it got the fans hooked.

(13) Bobby Allison leads a record 171 of 200 laps and wins the fastest Daytona 500 ever. The record average of 179.165mph still stands

(14) Best Action Flick of '84 -- "A View To A Kill" where James Bond (played with aggressive raw intensity by Lewis Collins) foils an IRA plot to kill the Prime Minister and everybody else at the British Grand Prix with a stolen nuclear weapon. Best scene of the movie, Bond commandering a Porsche 956 to chase the bad guys up and down the roads surrounding Silverstone. The stunt driver for those scenes? 1984 24 Hours of Daytona and Daytona 500 winner Derek Bell. The fourth British driver to win the Great American Race.

(15) Bill Elliott puts up a new qualifying record at more than 206 miles per hour and dominates the 500

(16) The first 500 win for the real-life Stroker Ace, Tim Richmond who would also win in '89 and '98. Also the first 500 victory for Rick Hendrick as an owner.

(17) A very popular victory for underdog Neil Bonnett as he outran both Bobby and Davey Allison is a stirring final lap.

(18) 1985 Formula 1 World Champion Keke Rosberg left Tyrrell Project Four because of the bad relationship between himself and team co-principal Ron Dennis in 1986. Rosberg looked at some other offers, but he was intrigued by a chance to test a stock car at Darlington. He would test a 1987 Ford T-Bird for NASCAR legend Bud Moore. Rosberg was so impressive that Moore signed him and hired another NASCAR legend to be his crew chief, Jake Elder. Rosberg raced for Moore from 1987-1993. He recorded 18 NASCAR Cup Series victories, with 90 being his best season with 5 wins and a strong 3rd place finish in the Cup Series standings. He also won a road course event every year between '87 and his retirement in '95. In '94 and '95, Rosberg raced for Junior Johnson and won 6 more races, including his win in the 1995 Brickyard 400.

(19) After three consecutive 2nd place finishes in the Great American Race, the Intimidator finally came home first. The first of two for Dale Earnhardt.

(20) Al Unser Jr. took a break from winning an IndyCar Championship to take a one-off drive with Hendrick.

(21) Davey Allison gets the first Daytona 500 win for a team that would become powerful in NASCAR for years to come. Robert Yates Racing formed in 1989 with Davey Allison as the driver, and it grew to become a contender by 1992, where Allison narrowly lost the championship to privateer driver-owner Alan Kulwicki, who had been good friends with Allison since they both came up through ARCA and Busch Grand National series racing together. After the '92 season Robert Yates and Alan Kulwicki agreed to a merger and Davey Allison bought in as a full partner. Yates-Kulwicki-Allison Racing was born. . In 1993 Davey Allison won the Daytona 500 in their first race as a united team. Allison put his name on the door as a partner after retiring from active competition in 1999. Since 1993, Yates-Kulwicki-Allison has won 5 Cup Series Championship, including the 2011 title where budding superstar Carl Edwards defeated Dale Earnhardt Jr by 1 point with a win in the Ford 400 at Homestead in November.

(22) Alan Kulwicki got his only Daytona 500 victory, edging out teammate Ernie Irvan, who would be tragically killed in a practice accident later in the year at Michigan.

(23) Rookie Jeff Gordon, who would be heading off to drive for Tyrrell/Stewart in Formula 1 was put in a third entry for YKA at Daytona. All he did was put his car on the front row and on race day put it to the field in a sparkling winning drive. NASCAR observers still wonder how great the 2-time Formula 1 champion would have been if he raced NASCAR full time. Gordon has 20 career NASCAR starts, mostly running as a fill-in when his Grand Prix schedule allowed, he has 7 career wins.

(24) Chrysler American Motors' dream final became real with Kyle Petty's victory in '96, just two years after Dodge returned to NASCAR

(25) Ricky Craven brought home two straight from the Petty-Dodge-Chrsyler American Motors NASCAR effort, in would be the beginning of one of the great season stories in NASCAR history. The young driver from Newburgh, Maine would win the first of two championships for Petty. Craven's '97 Daytona win was the basis for the 2005 Academy Award-winning film "Days Of Thunder".

(26) Dale Jarrett's win came from left field, so did a Cinderella championship season for himself and for the Daugherty-Nance Racing organization. After retiring from the NBA in 1994, Brad Daugherty started with one team in the Busch Grand National series. In 1996, his former teammate from the Cleveland Cavaliers Larry Nance sold his NHRA team to buy into Daugherty's NASCAR effort. With sponsorship from Interstate Batteries, and drivers Dale Jarrett and Bobby Labonte, this small fighting team became a winner as Jarrett won the 500 and the Cup Series championship. In 2007, Daugherty became the first of the established team to sign with Toyota and since then DNR with drivers Denny Hamlin, Kasey Kahne and Jeff Burton have made the chase every year since 2006.
The big news for 2012 is the addition of a fourth team to bring up '11 Nationwide Series champion Parker Kligerman to the Cup series. DNR will also field a 2-car "farm team" in the Nationwide Series with Darrell Wallace Jr. and Paulie Harraka

(27) Roger Penske and Rusty Wallace finally got their Daytona 500 after a decade of close calls.

(28) Dale Earnhardt led a 1-2-3 for Childress-Earnhardt with Big E up front, Little E in second and a good friend, Michael Waltrip in 3rd.

Now, what about Michael Waltrip? Michael ITTL is a Southern cornpone best buddy version of Tiff Needell. He's the co-host of Speed's "Wind Tunnel" with Dave Despain, Kenny Wallace and Maryeve Dufault "Wind Tunnel" ITTL is the cross between the OTLs Wind Tunnel and BBC's "Top Gear".

(29) After Alan Kulwicki retired to become a full-time owner/engineer in 2000, he moved up a protege groomed through the trucks and Busch ranks named Matt Kenseth. Kenseth is the first driver to win championships in all three NASCAR National Series.

(32) Jeff Gordon's plans for life after racing get a big boost as his two-year old NASCAR team lands a big win. America, meet Jimmie Johnson!

(33) Daugherty-Nance picked up Jeff Burton off the scrap heap in 2006 and Burton's been a sage to young up-and-comers.

Hey, where's Ward Burton? Ward drove in NASCAR from 1994-2001, he has 4 career victories, but in 2002 he hung up his helmet to devote his life to his passion from wildlife, hunting and conservation. In 2004, he ran for congress as a Republican in Virginia's 5th Congressional District and won. Burton is a respected three-term representative and one of the foremost voices on issues of land use development and environmental protection. The rumor on Capitol Hill is that Burton has his eye on 2012 U.S. Senate race in Virginia and would be a very tough man to beat.

(34) Popular Aussie V8 Supercar star Marcos Ambrose came to NASCAR in 2007, where he has become a very solid driver and the master of the road course events. His shocking Daytona win had all of Daytona partying. Ambrose narrowly missed making the Chase in 2011, but he and eccentric No Fear team owner Boris Said vow to get in the Chase in 2012.

(1) The first of many championships for Kingdom of the Petty Family. Petty Enterprises has won a championship in every decade of NASCAR competition, starting with Petty's first in the "Fabulous Hudson Hornet"

(2) "The Clown Prince of Stock Cars" Joe Weatherly was NASCAR's first crossover star. Paired with crew chief/owner Bud Moore. Weatherley won 33 races between 1961-1964 and four straight championships, he also managed to get NASCAR on the cover of Time, Life and Sports Illustrated as his fame stretched behold the NASCAR strongholds in the American south because of him playful, joyful demeanor. His 1963 appearance on "The Tonight Show" with Jack Paar is still considered one of the funniest single interviews in the show's history.
But good died young here. Weatherly died in a fiery pileup at Lap 77 of the 1965 Daytona 500. One of many sad occurances that marked the sport in the 1960s

(3) Ned Jarrett finished 2nd in the championship in '61, '63 and '64 in a heated rivalry with Weatherly. Jarrett dedicated the '65 season to the memory of his longtime rival and good friend. After winning the Daytona 500, Jarrett requested that his trophy for winning the Daytona 500 be placed in Weatherly casket. "It is fitting the the man who pushed me to be a great driver and a role model should have this. If it wasn't for Joe, I wouldn't be as good as I became."

Jarrett retired in 1968, and much like he did in the OTL became a racing commentator for MRN Radio in the 1970s, but cable Television magnate Ted Turner saw more in Jarrett and starting in 1983, Superstation TBS built a talk-interview show around the affable Ned Jarrett called "TBS Talk of the South." The show was a big hit, and Jarrett dubbed "The Country Dick Cavett" did the show from 1983-2003 before he retired from broadcasting in total. Today the show still runs on TBS and is co-hosted by his sons Glenn and Dale Jarrett.

(4) Richard Petty becomes the first 2nd generation champion. Just like he was in the OTL, He was "King Richard" Immensely popular, young and a folk hero. But even moreso in ITTL because of breakthrough stardom of Weatherly earlier in the decade, and a bigger footprint of motorsport in the popular culture in the 1960s. For his career Petty won 205 races. His last victory coming in the 1984 Firecracker 400, where President John Anderson was in attendance. The King retire from competition in 1986, but continued to run Petty Enterprises along side his son Kyle. After 8 mostly trying years after The King retire, the reunion Petty Enterprises and Dodge brought them back to the top with five NASCAR Cup Championship. Today, Petty is more a driver coach for racing organization with Kyle and Maurice Petty running the day-to-day, racing and business operations. The Pettys on the track are represented by Kyle’s son Adam, one of most popular drivers on the circuit and at age 31, he’s a three-time champion, and missed a fourth by inches over Carl Edwards in ’11.

(5) Petty and the Superbird begin a run of 5 straight championships

(6) Bobby Allison breaks the Petty streak and win the first NASCAR Cup title for American Motors or its affiliated marques since 1954.

(7) Wisconsin short track star Dave Marcis becomes the first driver from north of the Mason-Dixon line to win a championship in NASCAR premier division. His example inspired a host of Northern talent to head south, including fellow Wisconsinites Alan Kulwicki and Matt Kenseth.

(8) Richard Petty’s last championship, in a comeback that went down to the final race where 5 drivers still had a strong chance to win the title. Petty outlasted Cale Yarbrough by 9 points.

(9) Dale Earnhardt was ’79 Rookie of the Year and nearly was Champion. In 1980, he got the job done and began a decade of of victory…and rivalry.

(10) Darrell Waltrip’s second championship after a pitched battle with Dale Earnhardt that featured fenders bent and punches thrown. The two men to this day still don’t speak.

(11) Bill Elliott interrupted the Waltrip-Earnhardt feud with a dominant 13-win season and the rewriting of the NASCAR speed record books in the Ford “Aero” Thunderbird.

(12) After years in IndyCar and Formula 1, Tim Richmond came to NASCAR, and Earnhardt had a new rival in the brash man the British tabloids called “The Yankee James Hunt”

The Earnhardt-Richmond feud defined NASCAR from 1987 all the way to 2000, when Richmond retired and joined ESPN’s broadcast team.
The two men couldn’t have been more different.

Dale Earnhardt: A dirt-track “linthead” from Kannapolis, North Carolina
Tim Richmond: The rich man’s son from Ashland, Ohio

(13-15) The building and formation of the Yates-Kulwicki-Allison empire was in these three championship seasons.

(16) Not to be outdone. Ford’s other top team Roush Engineering broke through with former ASA Champ Mark Martin from Arkansas. Today Mark Martin owns a racing school and is a partner in Roush Performance Cars. He’s also on the board of director of Ford Motor Company as the owner of one of the largest network of Ford dealerships in the US (Mark Martin’s Auto Malls Inc.)

(17) Tim Richmond’s 1996 was a wild year. It began with the most improbable thing ever for the wild racetrack romeo. He became a kept man, marrying Amy Grant in January 1996. The evangelist-musician met Richmond after a race in a tough 1993 season and told him, “If you don’t change you ways mister, you’ll be following your career in NASCAR…You'll be going to hell right with it.” They struck up a friendship and it went deeper than either could imagine.

By 1996, Richmond wasn’t the tailchasing crazy man he was in the 1980s. Tim Richmond grew up.

In 1996, this new man still had the ol’ talent on the track. He won 9 races and the Winston Cup Championship. Where is Tim Richmond now? Speed racing commentator, happily married, and proud father of Heather (age 13 and already showing moxie behind the wheel), Constance (age 11, she’s a musician like her mama), and Suzette (age 8, and she loves horses). Richmond’s family is the subject of a coming reality show called “Tim Richmond’s Girls”. I saw a preview of the first few episodes. I think TLC has a hit that could even be bigger than “What The Hell Are You Wearing?”

(18) Ricky Craven – Sounds like a Mainer. Competes like a Good Ol’ Boy and the fans love him...And they like him even more on TV as a panelist for HBO’s “NASCAR After Dark”.

(19) After years if trying Dale Earnhardt got his 5th championship. He’s retired after the 2004 season, when he lost the Chase to his son, and fumed “This Chase crap ain’t racin’ dammit!”

(20) Adam Petty’s first championship. And just like his grandfather, he spent 2 hours after the trophy presentation signing autographs. Petty is one of the big reasons why NASCAR has seen a spike of younger fans in recent years. The first champion drivers to grow up in the MTV Generation, Petty has a following among young folks, and his own Cartoon show on the Cartoon Network.

He’s also the family spokesperson for the charity he and his father created. Camp 43, a summer camp for critically ill children set up in the North Carolina hills 25 miles from the Petty racing shops in Level Cross.

(21) Dale Earnhardt Jr. won his first championship…And like his daddy, he has developed some bad blood, especially with fans of Adam Petty. Adam and Dale Jr. have a feud between each other.

(22) The recent streak of NASCAR’s young guns winning championships, was interrupted by longtime star Rusty Wallace, who won 7 races in the Chase and raced into retirement as a champion.

(23) Jimmie Johnson brought home the championship for the Gordon-Evernham team. On the same day Johnson won at Atlanta to take the champions lead his mentor and owner Jeff Gordon won the Formula 1 Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi.

(24) A lot of two and four legged fans were rooting for Greg Biffle, who was sponsored by the American Humane Society.

(25-26) The Earnhardt Jr.-Adam Petty rivalry got so heated in these two seasons that Brian France and Mike Helton had to give them the Japanese Inspection Speech more than one.

(27) Carl Edwards stuck his nose in the Earnhardt-Petty fight, and pissed them both off by winning the championship.

Screvier20

December 13th, 2011, 02:31 PM

Looks like Petty Enterprises reminders an top tier team in this TL. Does Kyle Petty drive his whole career at Petty Enterprises many wins does he have double the number of OTL. Love that Penske finally wins an Cup championship. Great that Tim Richmond, Dale Earnhardt, Alan Kulwicki,Davey Allison, Adam Petty all live in this TL. I see you have Ernie Irvan killed at Michigan in 1994.

Chipperback

December 13th, 2011, 04:24 PM

"Does Kyle Petty drive his whole career at Petty Enterprises many wins does he have double the number of OTL.

Kyle spends all of his career not just driving at Petty Enterprises, but taking a greater active role in its operations. It was Kyle who convinced Richard to go to that meeting at Penske's offices in Reading. The King was going to balk at the meeting, but Kyle saw something in what Donahue was suggesting.

Kyle had a 14 career wins and was in championship contention in 1992 and 1996. Today he is the CEO of Petty Enterprises.

The organization did have a rough time between 1986 and 1991, but 1992, Petty found something in the Pontiac that the other Pontiac teams couldn't find that gave them an advantage. The Pettys, acting similar to the Elliots OTL, did disclose much unless there was a give and take. Roger Penske understood and disclosed information in exchange for information. But Pontiac wanted to force sharing with all their teams, even the privateers that weren't receiving factory involvement. The dislike of how GM was handling Pontiac's program led both Penske and Petty to go with Chrysler American Motors.

"Love that Penske finally wins an Cup championship."

The 2005 farewell season for Rusty Wallace saw him erase a lot of zeros off his career ledger...including a dominating chase effort.
Rusty is a NASCAR broadcaster now, but his racing hearts lie in other series. His son Stephen, is racing in the IndyCar Series and his neice Chrissy has found a home in the World Of Outlaws, driving for Tony Stewart's team.

Screvier20

December 14th, 2011, 03:54 AM

(3)Back in 1964 Ned Jarrett suggested to Ford racing boss Lee Iacocca that if Ford was looking to sell more cars to an emerging African-American marketplace, they need to look at factory support for a talented, but broke privateer from Danville, Virginia named Wendell Scott. Iacocca listened closely and in 1965, Scott's privateer operation was very competitive including a race win at Jacksonville, Florida. In 1966 All-American Racers bought Wendell's team and made him a partner in the AAR NASCAR operation. Wendell immediately went out and got Dan Gurney's first race win as a team owner with a win on the dirt road course at Fonda, New York. He also followed up with wins at Texas World Speedway and Martinsville, Virginia. In 1968 Scott brought home a Daytona 500 win, 13 years after Joie Ray was the first African-American driver to win at Indianapolis.How other African-American drivers ran or run NASCAR in this TL. I see that Wendell won at Fonda driving for Dan Gurney I love this because Fonda is my hometown track.

President Al Bundy

January 6th, 2012, 11:16 PM

This thread needs some serious bumping. Gearhead of this board, unite! :D

The POD for TTL is a continuing World Touring Car Championship. The original 1987 one that is.

1988 - Roberto Ravaglia (BMW M3)[1]

1989

The World Touring Car Championship would see some changes for the 1989 season. First of all, a new points system was introduced, similiar to the World Sportscar Championship or Formula One. That meant that you had to fight for overall wins instead of class wins, to have a shot at winning the world championship now. BMW wasn't happy with the rule change, as it took away any chance at winning the world championship. As BMW didn't want to build a turbocharged M3, they withdrew their factory support to focus on the thriving DTM, where they had a fair chance at beating the Sierras.
Because of BMW's withdrawal, Division 2 would only see privateer BMWs, fighting with privateer Mercedes, even though they had some support by AMG, who were building the Group A 190Es. But AMG themselves preferred to compete in the DTM either.
The premier Division 3 was feared to be a "Fordfest". But this class would see a serious contender in form of the Nissan Skyline R32 GT-R. Like the Sierra Cosworth, the Skyline was turbocharged. But it also had four-wheel drive and all-wheel steering. While Ford had the advantage in the earlier rounds of the championship, Nissan became dominant as the season went on. While Ford drivers Klaus Niedzwiedz and Pierre Dieudonné could narrowly win the 1989 World Championship, it became clear that Ford had to improve its World Championship contender.

1990

After Ford left the DTM (Because the organizers banned turbocharged engines), the company had freed up enough resources to improve their car. Although their new "Ford Sierra Cosworth RS200" wouldn't be ready until the Bathurst race in autumn, it certainly was a revolution. The Sierra RS200 had four-wheel drive, like their competitors. It also got aerodynamical improvements, like a massive rear wing, similiar to the one the Mercedes 190E Evo II had. But until the new Sierra arrived, its competitors dominated the championship.
Yes, you read right. Ford and Nissan got a new competitor this season. Audi, coming fresh from successes in the Trans-AM and the IMSA GT series, now entered their V8 Quattro into the WTCC. For the 1990 season, they only entered one car, but with a top line-up. Hans-Joachim Stuck and Frank Jelinski were at the wheel of the Audi, which came with a naturally-aspirated 3.5l V8 engine, but also with four-wheel drive.
The Audi would bravely fight against the Nissans entered by Hashemi Motorsport and Team Impul. While Stuck and Jelinski could win a couple of rounds, the championship would still go to Kazuyoshi Hoshino and Toshio Suzuki from Team Impul.
But the new Sierra showed promise at the end of the season, and so did the Audi. Thus, 1991 promised to be an exciting touring car season.

1991

All three manufacturers involved in Division 3 brought improved cars to the grid. While Ford and Nissan each brought 4 works-supported cars to the grid (no to mention the privateer Fords), Audi brought two cars. The first one was still driven by the duo of Stuck and Jelinski, while the second one was driven by youngsters Frank Biela (Although he already drove in the WTCC for Ford) and Hubert Haupt. Especially Biela would deliver a couple of good races in the season, and it became clear that he was a future star in the making.
The 1991 season was indeed a three-way battle between Ford, Nissan and Audi. Thanks to the powerful V8 engine, as well as the light chassis, Audi could keep up with the turbos. And thanks to some clever team strategies, Hans-Joachim Stuck could narrowly win the 1991 World Touring Car Championship. But Ford and Nissan wanted to take back the title in 1992.

1992

1992 was to be the last year for the Group A regulations. Before the first race of the season, the FIA announced their new regulations for 1993. Once again there would be three classes. Class 1 was for silhouette touring cars, with 2.5l naturally-aspirated R4 or V6 engines, and large freedoms in terms of driving aids and aerodynamics. 4WD cars would still be allowed, but they would get slightly more weight than RWD cars. Class 1 was even backed by two national championships, the German and the Japanese Touring Car Championship, thus ensuring works-entries by manufacturers from Germany and Japan. Class 2 was for production-based touring cars with 2l engines, but with certain modifications allowed, although not at the same level as Class 1. The class 2 touring cars were similiar to those being used by the British Touring Car Championship since 1990, and many national championships around the world prepared to implement these regs. Class 3 was also for production-based cars, but only with few modification allowed. These regs aimed at privateers as well as gentlemen drivers, while Classes 1 and 2 aimed at manufacturers and larger privateer teams.
As for the season itself, Nissan won half of the races of that season, including a win at the infamous 1992 Bathurst 1000. Consequently, the 1992 world championship went to the team of Mark Skaife and Masahiro Hasemi.

[1]The 1988 WTCC season is similiar to OTLs 1988 ETCC season, so I left it aside.

(1) 1993 was the final year of the three-class system. For 1994, the Group A cars became the top class, with Group A2 being for two-wheel-drive entries. As before, Group A2 cars were allowed more power to compensate for their lower traction.
(2) Chrysler was on its way to victory in the 1995 WRC in any case, but the drivers' championship was in large part settled when Toyota was tossed out of the 1995 WRC for its illegal turbo restrictors. Toyota did not return for 1996, but they did return for 1997.
(3) With Toyota sitting out 1996, the drivers' title turned into a straight fight between Colin McRae and JJ Lehto, and the two drivers won all but three of the 14 rounds of the 1996 WRC and second-placed Lehto finished 52 points ahead of third-placed Malcolm Wilson's Escort.
(4) The final year before the WRC regulations came in was a battle between Chrysler's Gremlin SRT4, Mitsubishi's Lancer Evolution VI and Subaru's Impreza 22B, with the Toyota Celica GT-Four and Ford Escort RS Cosworth playing the spoilers. A legendary run at the final run in Britain secured Canadian driver Patrick Richard's first and only WRC title.
(5) Richard Burns' illness and the inexperience of teammate Petter Solberg allowed Peter Bourne to show what he could do as a veteran driver, and the Aussie legend took full advantage of it. Bourne won three and finished all 14 of the rallies held in 2004, winning the title by four points over the Toyotas of Carlos Sainz.
(6) Burns' treatment for his brain tumor is successful enough that Burns fights his way back into the 2006 WRC. JJ Lehto asks Chrysler management to allow Burns a shot, and Richard takes full advantage of it. Lehto backs up his teammate and friend all year, and Burns blasts his way to the 2006 WRC title. Weeks after his victory, however, he dies from his brain tumor on January 10, 2007. A special "Richard Burns Edition" of the Gremlin SRT4 is released in his honor for the 2007 model year. The loss also saddens Lehto, and struggles through 2007 before retiring at the end of the 2007 season.
(7) The longest WRC season ever at 18 rallies sees some drivers struggle to maintain the ability to race in all rallies. Those able to handle it prove to be the survivors. WRC sophomores Ken Block and Travis Pastrana, after three straight Rally America championships, convince Subaru to keep on in the WRC, and reward Subaru with their fourth WRC title.
(8) The final year for the WRC rules that have been in place since 1999. The Super 2000 cars were first allowed to race against the WRC cars, but would completely replace them for 2011.

Chipperback

January 10th, 2012, 09:50 PM

Need assistance with it? :D

Absolutely...In fact, I wanna call all of the AH.com gearheads together. In the "Protect and Survive tradition"...Lets come together and build a timeline of the 2012 season in world motorsports.

The 2012 WRC season should be hot..

"The Gremlin R/T Abarth WRC is good car out of the box. Just wait until we really test it!" -- Chrysler Motorsports President Mark Donahue at the launch of the Gremlin Abarth WRC Team at Turin, Italy...January 10, 2012

TheMann

January 11th, 2012, 01:18 PM

Absolutely...In fact, I wanna call all of the AH.com gearheads together. In the "Protect and Survive tradition"...Lets come together and build a timeline of the 2012 season in world motorsports.

The 2012 WRC season should be hot..

"The Gremlin R/T Abarth WRC is good car out of the box. Just wait until we really test it!" -- Chrysler Motorsports President Mark Donahue at the launch of the Gremlin Abarth WRC Team at Turin, Italy...January 10, 2012

I'm in. :cool: My speciality is Indycars and sports car racing, so I'll get started on that one first....

"What Chrysler, Audi, Toyota, Peugeot and BMW do mean anything to us. We came to win, and we know how to do it, and we've got the strongest car we have ever entered for the IMSA Sportscar Championship. We think we have a winner, and we don't use PR spokesmen. We do our talking on the track." -- Ford Racing Team Panoz principal Don Panoz, answering a comment that the new Panoz-Ford LM12 may just be catching up to the opposition, Road Atlanta, January 11, 2012

TheMann

January 12th, 2012, 08:40 PM

@ Chipperback: Probably wanna confirm this is alright for what the 2012 Indycar Series would look like.....

Now, this is a 29-round schedule, not exactly something for the faint of heart, but considering NASCAR runs 36 rounds and these are better spaced than many NASCAR schedules (two stretches of four races in four weeks - but not much geographical travel, and that's deliberate) and soaking up nearly every major media market in America. I am without a few Indycar staples such as Portland and Nazareth, but Portland is now between Pacific Raceways to the north and Laguna Seca to the south and Nazareth is too small to hold the races that the big-time 2012 Indycar Series holds. I only kept Richmond because its a great event and the track was very enthusiastic towards Indycars.

[1] The five events of the "Izod Velocity" Trophy. The driver who does the best across all four events splits a prize of $2 million with a fan. Any driver who can win all five gets $10 million.
[2] The United States 500 was called off after the Andrettis, Roger Penske and Gilles Villeneuve negotiated a truce between CART and Tony George in 1996, but George and Penske agreed it a good idea, and the United States 500 returned for 1997 as a complement to the Indy 500 rather than a rival to it. The Vanderbilt Trophy is the championship trophy for the United States 500.
[3] Bridgehampton was saved from demolition and rebuilt by several wealthy New York car nuts in the 1990s, and rebuilt a second time to host major racing events after the highly successful New York trophy races in New York City in 2002-04. Bridgehampton hosted IMSA and Indycars for the first time in 2005, and became host to a World Superbike round in 2007 and races of the DTM, FIA GT Championship and the GP2 series in 2009. Bridgehampton is today regarded as one of the finest of American road racing circuits.

Classes
Class 1
After years of silhouette racing, 2012 sees the introduction of a spec chassis, over which a road shell is placed. While teams have relative freedoms in terms of suspension or aerodynamics, the engine rules are strict, 4.0l N/A V8s with rear-wheel-drive are mandatory for this class.
Six manufacturers have brought cars to the new class 1. Mercedes brought their C-Class, Audi their A4, BMW their M3, Infinity their G35, Honda their Accord and Ford their Mondeo. So naturally class 1 is where the manufacturers are competing, although some semi-private teams also compete in this class.

Class 2
Class 2 is the opposite of class 1, at least underneath the road shell. While aerodynamics or suspensions are strictly limited, teams are free to use any production-based engine, as long as it has a proper homologation. Naturally this lead to a variety of manufacturers in this class. In 2012, Seat, Citroen, Chevrolet, Chrysler (Thanks to tremendous support by Abarth), Lada, Brilliance and Chery (Both from China) brought works teams, along with many privateers who enter cars from Ford, Opel, BMW, VW, Audi, Toyota or Honda.

Class 3
Class 3 is the strictest class of this series, as it is purely production-based. Only few modifications are required (and permitted), thus enabling privateers and gentlemen drivers to race for reasonable costs.

The 2012 grid, as well as the long history of the WTCC comes later.

TheMann

January 13th, 2012, 11:53 PM

@ President Al Bundy: Great WTCC schedule, but I set up the Indycar race there in the (Northern Hemisphere) spring, and I rather doubt they would allow two races in one season there. Switch up Curitiba and Surfers Paradise and we're golden. If you don't want to do that, you could always throw a curveball and move the race to Mount Panorama or Albert Park in Melbourne....

I even worked out making the event in Argentina a WSC / WTCC event, with the WTCC having the headliner on Sunday. :)

It looks to me like Group 1 is like the DTM, Group 2 is Super 2000 with more liberal engine rules and Group 3 is production-based cars like the old British Touring Car Production category. Am I fairly close, here? And with 500 km races, you'll certainly have two drivers to the car. Either way, it looks excellent. Touring Cars at Watkins Glen and Montreal......*licks lips*

6) IMSA Championship Series at Long Beach (April 13-14)
Long Beach Grand Prix Circuit, Long Beach, California
2 Hours 45 Minutes, Separate LMP and GT Races, held on Friday and Saturday evenings
Event alongside United States Grand Prix West and Indycar Grand Prix of Long Beach

@ President Al Bundy: Great WTCC schedule, but I set up the Indycar race there in the (Northern Hemisphere) spring, and I rather doubt they would allow two races in one season there. Switch up Curitiba and Surfers Paradise and we're golden. If you don't want to do that, you could always throw a curveball and move the race to Mount Panorama or Albert Park in Melbourne....

Okay, then I guess we share the same universe. :D

Well, I thought that the WTCC would share the same weekend with the V8 Supercars race. But if the IndyCar race still exists in the spring, then I'll move the WTCC event to Adelaide. Actually it could be a consolation prize for Adelaide after they lost the Formula One race. Let's just say, the city department of Surfers doesn't allow two race weekends per year ;).

As for the Mount Panorama: The V8 Supercars still went on their own after the 1992 season, and as such the Bathurst 1000 isn't part of the World Championship anymore.

I even worked out making the event in Argentina a WSC / WTCC event, with the WTCC having the headliner on Sunday. :)Yup, that'll fit. ITTL the FIA allows appearantly two of its world championships to race at the same weekend.

It looks to me like Group 1 is like the DTM, Group 2 is Super 2000 with more liberal engine rules and Group 3 is production-based cars like the old British Touring Car Production category. Am I fairly close, here? And with 500 km races, you'll certainly have two drivers to the car. Either way, it looks excellent. Touring Cars at Watkins Glen and Montreal......*licks lips*Class 1 is actually OTLs new rule set for the V8 touring car series in New Zealand: http://www.ten-tenths.com/forum/showthread.php?t=126947
But they had regs resembling OTLs DTM rules until 2011, but due to the economic situation, they went for cheaper rules, while still ensuring spectacular touring cars.
Class 2 is a mixture of Super2000 and GTE/GT3 regs. Class 3 is just like you guessed, but with no aerodynamics (OTLs BTC-P cars had (As far as I can recall) some aerodynamic devices).

As for your IMSA championship, what happened to Daytona? Did NASCAR lock the IMSA out? Or is it a WSC event? But why did the Americans give away their premier race to the FIA?

[1]After years of competing in class 2, GM decided to develop a class 1 touring car, over which either a Chevy (Cruze) or an Opel chassis (Insignia) could be put on. But the two races in 2012 are only glorified tests, to see how the car fares in competition.

21 teams will be a part of the 2012 Formula 1 season. The largest entry list since the late 1980s. With that in mind, the word "prequalifying" returns to the lexicon of F1. All competing teams from the previous season will automatically advance to the Saturday afternoon "knockout" qualifying sessions. Among the rest they will drive in a 1-hour traditional-style qualifying session on Saturday morning. Before the session, the number of drivers who will transfer to the knockout rounds will be pre-determined.

The following teams have earned a 1-year provisional place in knockout qualifying because they have won a drivers or constructors title in the last 10 years: Jordan, Stewart/Tyrrell, Brock Australia, Ferrari, Prost EuroFrance, Prodrive Proton

The following teams have earned a provisional slot in knockout qualifying through the first 6 races of 2012: SuperAguri, Williams, DOME, Minardi, Arrows, Vector

After the 6th, 12th, and 18th races of the season, the prequalifying order will be reevaluated based on performance during the season.

"Prequalify to Pole" -- Any driver from a prequalifying team that earns a pole position for the race weekend removes the team from prequalifying for the next race. That team can keep the bonus for the rest of the 6-race period IF they get at least one team in the final knockout qualifying round for each subsequent race.

"Battlefield Commendation" -- Any driver from a prequalifying team that wins a race automatically removes that driver from prequalifying for the rest of the 6-race period and relegates the driver on the bubble for prequalifying for the rest of the 6-race period. The only exception to this rule involves teams that hold the 1-year "champions exemption".

next post -- The 2012 schedule, the points and we'll meet the drivers who will try to take Sebastian Vettel's crown :)

TheMann

January 16th, 2012, 05:10 AM

^ 42 entrants for the Formula One World Championship? :eek: You'll need more than pre-qualifying for that bunch at many tracks. Trying to run 30+ cars at Monza or Suzuka or Silverstone would be easy, but that would be hard at places like Valencia or Melbourne or Montreal would be very difficult. Don't even attempt it at Monaco.

Bioptron Brabham BMW
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Engine: BMW W-12
Sponsors: Nacional, Parmalat, Under Armour, Trojan, Beats by Dre
Drivers 5- Bruno Senna (BRA) 6-Alex Rossi (USA)
Outlook: Gordon Murray returns to Formula 1 after a long struggle to regain ownership of the Brabham team name. Among his investment group is former champ Elio de Angelis, who will also serve as a driver coach.
The young wheelmen could make short work of prequalifying. Bruno Senna ran hard all last season for a deficient effort at Borgudd. American Alex Rossi was perhaps the best driver in GP2 last season, but bad luck got in the way of a title.

Piquet Grand Prix do Brasil
Chassis: NP212
Engine: BMW W-12
Sponsors: Banco do Brasil, Varig, Nike, Embraer
Drivers: 7-Rubens Barrichello (BRA) 8- Vitor Meira (BRA)
Outlook: The new Piquet team went after veterans for their debut. Barrichello leads all active drivers in most starts, and Meira was brought in from the IndyCar ranks to get the team good results. The question is? How long until Piquet Sr. signs Nelson Piquet Junior?

Borgudd Konigsegg Formula 1
Chassis: SB32
Engine: Ford FR-11 V-10
Sponsors: Mama Mia, Konigsegg, Saab, TDK, Gibson, Nokia, Express
Drivers: 14-Nick Heidfeld (GER) 41-Heikki Kovalainen (FIN)
Outlook: The third season of running a team for F1's resident rocker. Slim Borgudd says he has heady vets who can run near the front. He'll need them to get out of pre- qualifying though. Heidfeld likes the new chassis. Kovalainen feels the team needs a better powerplant. He may get his wish. Konigsegg plans to have a radical W-12 engine ready in time for Brazil.

Brock Australia HDT Ltd.
Chassis: B05/12
Engine: Ilmor-Holden V-10
Sponsors: Holden, Mobil 1, Foster's, Thorpe Athletic, Adelaide Alive!, Supercheap International
Drivers: 15- Mark Webber (AUS) 16-Will Power (AUS)
Outlook: Peter Brock's little team that did got bigger in the offseason with a raft of new sponsors and adding IndyCar star Will Power. Webber is very confident about this team chances. "We finally have real capitalisation into the team and have Australia truly on board believing in what we can do in Formula 1," Webber said. "With myself and Will Power, Oz has a formidable team that can take a shot at Mercedes."

Williams Grand Prix Engineering
Chassis: FW30
Engine: RenaultSport V-10
Sponsors: Canon, British Airways, Q8, Rowntree's, Hawker-Siddeley/Sukhoi, Lada
Drivers: 17- Robert Kubica (POL) 18-Vitaly Petrov (RUS)
Outlook: Year #2 of Franks "Beasts of the East" driver line-up. Both put Williams on the podium. Getting engines from Renault could put one or both at the top of the podium.

Team Springbok Formula One
Chassis: S312T1
Engine: Ferrari V-10
Sponsors: South African Airways, SASOL, Sabeka, Lucozade, Sexwale Financial Group
Drivers 19- Tomas Scheketer (SAF) 20- Alan van der Merwe (SAF)
Outlook: Almost four decades after being banned from Formula One, South Africa has their own team in F1. Jody Scheketer's maiden F1 effort features son Tomas, who was a winner in the IndyCar ranks and World Endurance Championship ace Alan van der Merwe. "We wanted to be South Africa's team from the last nut and bolt on the car," Jody Scheketer said. "I want South Africans to see Springbok the way Italians see Ferrari."

Minardi Motori Moderni
Chassis: M312
Engine: Ferrari V-10
Sponsors: Fondmetal, Agip, Puma, Kelemata, Candy, Chrysler American Motors
Drivers: 23-Jarno Trulli (ITA) 24- James Hinchcliffe (CAN)
Outlook: Everybody's second favorite team maybe on the way up. Rumors are swirling that Minardi and Abarth could be working on an engine deal. That could be why you see Chrysler American Motors logos on the car. Veteran shoe Trulli will be pushed by wild, fun, young Canadian talent James Hinchcliffe.

Prost EuroFrance Renault
Chassis: AP12
Engine: RenaultSport V-10
Sponsors: SNCF, Air France, Aerospatinale, EDF-Cogema, Renault, Elf
Drivers: 25- Sebastian Bourdais (FRA), 26- Roman Grosjean (FRA)
Outlook: At last, a team Alain Prost always wanted ALL FRENCH! After losing Fernando Alonso to his quest to match John Surtees, Prost locked in Bourdais and now adds GP2 Champion Grosjean, who many say is the best French talent since...well....Prost himself. Prost and Renault are high on beating their German and Italian rivals in '12

Scuderia Ferrari Agip
Chassis: F320T1
Engine: Ferrari flat-12
Sponsor: FIAT, Agip, Magnetti Marelli, Goodyear
Drivers: 27- Felipe Massa (BRA) 28-Juan Pablo Montoya (COL)
Outlook: Both Massa and Montoya have set the mark: Championship or Bust. A new car, an old-school/new-school flat-12 with the bugs worked out and two capable winners have Maranello thinking of dethroning Mercedes.
"This cavallini is ready to run," Ferrari board member Bobby Rahal said recently. "Mercedes time at the top will end in 2012."

Arrows Grand Prix UK Ltd.
Chassis: JS41
Engine: Ford V-10
Sponsor: Curly Wurly, Lucozade, Barclay's, PDVSA-Citgo, Marks and Spenser
Drivers: 29-Milka Duno (VEN) 30-Katherine Legge (GBR)
Outlook: A wild offseason for Arrows. First, Niko Hulkenberg leaves to go to ATS. Then Jackie Oliver gets 5 new co-owners, the reunited Spice Girls! Add Milka Duno, who brought sponsorship and an aggressive style to the team, and Marks and Spenser signing a 3-year deal with the team, and what you have is smiles on the faces of Oliver and competition director Theirry Boutsen. What hasn't changed. Determined, rock steady, Katherine Legge, who says this new Arrows is can put her back on the top of the podium.

Fashionista ST Formula 1
Chassis: F112/01
Engines: Mercedes V-10
Sponsor: DKNY, Kate Spade, Weetabix, RaceGirl, Nicola's Knicker Drawer , Hunt and Lumley, Susan Komen Foundation, Lady Under Armour
Drivers: 31-Simona de Silvestro (SWI) 32-Jacqueline Cevert (FRA)
Outlook: It supposed to be the tabloid headline of the offseason. Television Fashionistas Trinny Woodall and Susannah Constantine trading hemlines for the start-finish line. The founding mothers of "What Not To Wear" approached F1 the same way they approach the fashion-challenged. They surgically tackled the problem. Starting with Michele Mouton as team competition director, Bringing in Rob Marshall from Prodrive to design the car, and then getting two talents from left field. Budding IndyCar star Simona de Silvestro and GP2 runner-up Jacqueline Cevert, who same say is the best young French talent in the sport, not Roman Grosjean.
"Fashionista's goal is simple," Constantine said. "We want to win and we want to look good doing it."

ATS Superconfex Rennsport Deutschland
Chassis: D012
Engine: BMW V-10
Sponsors: ATS Wheels, Superconfex, Blauplunkt, Agfa
Drivers: 33- Niko Hulkenberg (GER) 34- Adrian Sutil (GER)
Outlook: Manfred and Jocquim Winkelhock revived the ATS name in F1 after a 2-decade absence. This time around they weren't just German guys out to have a good time. They got big funding from the Superconfex grocery chain to start with and then went after young, fast talents Hulkenberg and Sutil to build what they dub "Total Team Deutschland" with BMW power along for the ride.
Will the new ATS finally break into the podium? Stay tuned.

Scuderia Zanardi Rapide
Chassis: Z1
Engine: Honda V-10
Sponsor: Target-Super U, TDK, Mattel Intellivision HD, Electronic Arts, Honda
Drivers: 35-Giancarlo Fisichella (ITA) 36-Marco Andretti (USA)
Outlook: Three-time world champ Alex Zanardi is off to a good start as a team principal. A good chassis. Honda power and a blend of experience and youth in the cockpit. Fisichella says coming to the new team has revived his career and Marco Andretti has been locked in from minute one after a hard-fought 2011 GP2 championship and selected IndyCar events.
"I like what I have so far," Zanardi said. "I'll tell you, we wont be in prequalifying for long with this crew."

Force India Formula One
Chassis: F1/12
Engine: Mercedes V-10
Sponsor: Tata, Kingfisher, Rockstar, Whyte and McKay, Medion, Rocawear
Drivers: 37-Karun Chandhok (IND) 38-Marc Davis (USA)
Outlook: Chandhok showed promise in his second F1 season. American Marc Davis won the '09 British F3 title and finally gets an F1 berth after 2 years near the front of GP2. Davis, who will the third African-American to make an F1 start, should he qualify for a race this season, also brings Rocafella sponsorship to the team.

Vector Automotive USA Formula One
Chassis: W312
Engine: Ilmor V-10
Sponsor: Big League Chew, Sony Playstation, Nos, M&Ms, Boeing, Rock and Revolution, Petro-Canada
Drivers: 40-Kyle Busch (USA) 60-Andrew Ranger (CAN)
Outlook: The company that builds F-16s on wheels started in Formula 1 in 2009 with a clean sheet of a paper and a dream. Now they think thay have the people who can win races. Mechanical issues kept Kyle Busch just short of winning three times last season, before he was suspended two races for being over-aggressive, one of those time with equally aggressive Lewis Hamilton. Canadian newcomer Andrew Ranger has varied experience in IndyCars, stock cars and endurance cars. He also has a big-time patron in multiple- LeMans winner Ron Fellows.

Cheever Grand Prix
Chassis: C112
Engine: RenaultSport V-10
Sponsor: Kelloggs, Motorola, Waste Management, Timex, Cannondale, Izod, Elf, Renault
Drivers: 51-Ryan Hunter-Reay (USA), 52- Loic Duval (FRA)
Outlook: In the 1980s workmanlike Eddie Cheever willed himself to 8 career Formula 1 victories, including the win that would make him a trivia answer forever (Who won the first Formula 1 Grand Prix of the Soviet Union? Eddie Cheever, 1987) Now Cheever has put together his own team and thanks to some old friends from his competition days, he got Renault power. American Ryan Hunter-Reay is seen by some as a champion in the making. "I'm pretty sure I wont have Reay on this team very long," Cheever said. "Unless I become one of the big teams in F1. Loic Duval has the same type of talent." Duval, a former All Nippon F3000 champion, is finally getting a break in Formula 1 after test driving stints for Super Aguri and Brock Australia.

One problem I can see - we have the F1 race at Long Beach and the Indycar/ALMS round on separate weekends. Kinda a problem, that, but its not a severe problem.

Jim Clark Autodrome? What the heck is that? And can Britain sustain two Grands Prix? Three GPs in the United States?

Chipperback

January 16th, 2012, 03:38 PM

Well exactly how can Formula 1 fit into an Indycar ALMS weekend at the same facility. If we can make that work...We'll throw out Scotland..

Scotland...Jimmy Clark after he retired got together with some big Scottish money and built a nice facility outside of Edinburgh :)

But if that commits an ASB violation we can always dump it...But don't forget we have a much healthier economy in this 2012 as opposed to our 2012.

TheMann

January 16th, 2012, 04:30 PM

I wouldn't say its ASB trritory, but I would say that the US is unlikely to have three Grands Prix. Possible, but unlikely. Likewise for Scotland, though if you have arranged for Sir Clark (I can quite easily see a knighthood for him if he has a long and successful career) to set up a major facility in Scotland, then we can run with it, and you are correct in pointing out the greater prosperity of this world.

As for Long Beach, one option might be the "month of racing" idea I pointed out earlier, using a circuit that is open for regular use when nobody is racing on it. That being the case, Long Beach can stay right where it is, and I'll move the ALMS race back a week, allowing Indycars to run on the 15th, ALMS on the 21st and 22nd and Formula One on the 29th. I think we'd have to charge the Long Beach layout a bit, but with the greater prosperity of this world and the fact that this would surely be one of the finest of ALMS and Indycar events, that's easy, especially as you have a pile of Indycar drivers in your 2012 Formula One season. (I'm gonna have to figure out who is there and who isn't for the 2012 Indycar World Series grid. I'm minus Marco Andretti, Danica Patrick, Katherine Legge, Tomas Schekter, Alex Lloyd, Will Power, Vitaly Petrov, James Hinchcliffe, Sebastien Bourdais, Simona de Silvestro, Ryan Hunter-Reay and Kyle Busch. Have to work around that. :))

Team Penske enters 2012 after a narrow loss to Danica Patrick in the 2011 Championship, but as both Danica and Power are headed off to Formula, the game is back afoot. Steven Wallace, the highly-talented son of NASCAR legend Rusty Wallace, takes over Will Power's seat in the #12, and Chevrolet is not keen on losing again.

Chip Ganassi had an abysmal 2011 and does not seek to have that be repeated. Scott Dixon swapped seats with Tony Kanaan, and both Kimball and Rahal are around to learn from him and Franchitti, two of the best raw talents in Indycar Racing learning from two of the best. Add to that better cars from Riley and Scott and Veilside and more powerful Toyota R11 engines, and Ganassi hopes to have a better 2012.

The addition of famed actor Tom Cruise and NFL football legend Tom Brady to the ownership of the legendary Newman-Haas Racing Team has added to the financial security, and Boeing's discovery of the success of its marketing efforts in Indycars has led them to jump them to jump in as bodywork makers, using the program as a way of teaching its newcomers about aerodynamics. Formula One-bound Sebastien Bourdais was replaced in car #11 by newcomer Al "Just Al" Unser III, son of little Al and grandson of Big Al - and as such, he has a big rep behind him - when your father and grandfather are both Indy 500 legends, you tend to end up racing, and Al has proven himself worthy in three years of winning in Indy Lights. NHCR is expected to be one of the competitors for the 2012 championship, especially as road racing legend David Brabham has taught Sam Hornish Jr. much about road racing, and many of Sam's tricks on ovals have rubbed off on Brabham.

Andretti-Green were victorious in the 2011 season, only to see Marco Andretti and champion Danica Patrick head up into the Formula One ranks. Rebuilding from that, Japanese legend Takuma Sato and two-time Indy 500 winner Buddy Rice were brought on board to help tutor drivers, and J.R. Hildebrand, whose disastrous last-lap crash cost him the 2011 Indy 500, was joined by talented Canadian model-turned-racer Ashley Taws, who also became the new face of GoDaddy's racy marketing efforts. Rumors continue to swirl about Michael Andretti making a comeback, but so far, that had not come to anything, but Michael, it has to be said, has been working out recently.

KV Racing Technology's acrimonious split with Lotus did cause some trouble for them after 2011, and the departure of the "Russian Rocket" Vitaly Petrov caused more trouble, and the late-season problems forced team owners Jacques Villeneuve and Jimmy Vasser back to driving duties. KVRT is looking at 2012 as a rebuilding year, but they are not troubled by that. One alliance is heavily in their favor - Vasser and new F1 team boss Alex Zanardi are great friends, and two share data on aerodynamics and other information often, which if Zanardi is successful, should help KVRT get back going quickly.

2011 was a year to remember for AJ Foyt's rag-tag, Texas-tough team. After Beatriz's shocking win in the Indy 500, the Coyote proved to be amazingly good as a race car, and Foyt IV, or Quattro as he is popularly known for his wild driving style, became a regular force. Quattro's marriage to Casey Irsay, daughter of NFL team owner Jim Irsay, had the added effect of bringing a lot of the Indianapolis Colts' team into knowledge and interest in Indycar. Rumors of Irsay and/or Peyton Manning being involved in the team grew after one of Manning's rivals, New England's Tom Brady, bought into the Newman-Haas squad, but so far Super Tex keeps his team his. They are expected to be very good in 2012, but just how good nobody yet knows.

Dreyer and Reinbold now carries Lotus' flag as their chief team, along with Derrick Walker and Bryan Herta's outfits, and their primary aim is to show that KVRT's leaving them as a big, big mistake. Unlike most team, the drivers for the team - EJ Viso, Casey Mears and Mike Conway - haven't changed from 2011, and the team has improved its staff, and they feel a championship for them is very much possible.

Stewart Haas rolls high into 2012 after a successful 2011, with Stewart taking the championship for the fifth time and winning four times, showing that the "Smoke and Kenny Show", as Sebastien Bourdais called it in 2011, is still very much alive and kicking. Stewart is one of the remaining teams using both Lola chassis and bodywork, but Lola claims to have found a revolution in how to improve the car's drag numbers, which will likely give them a big edge.

2011 was the end of an era for one of the longest team-driver pairings in modern times, as Robby Gordon retired from Indycar racing, splitting with Derrick Walker after driving Walker's #5 car since 1994. Replacing Gordon, or attempting to in any case, is lanky Brit Justin Wilson, who also brings his engineers and long-time manager and strategist Jonathan Palmer to Walker with him. The number of Scots in this team has led it to be nicknamed "The Flying Scotsmen", and their involvement with Lotus and Wilson's arrival haven't reduced that view.

Gerry Forsythe's squad enters 2012 with a new Canadian to replace NASCAR-bound Patrick Carpentier in young guy Robert Wickens, who tore up the GP2 ranks in Europe in 2010 and 2011. With their usual substantial sponsorship and team organization, Forsythe's team is known for being steady improvers, which does somewhat terrify rivals, knowing that any real success they get will not be flash in the pan. Tracy says the 2012 team is the best he's ever had behind him, and few doubt that.

John Menard's team returns in 2012 without his son Paul, who is headed off to try his luck in the World Sportscar Championship, and with Indy Lights top gun Sebastien Saveedra as his replacement. Menard's homebuilt Chrysler turbo engines proved in 2011 to be stupidly powerful but quite unreliable and prone to spectacular failures, best manifested by the red flag that had to come out after Menard's engine failure at Road America in 2011. However, the team is confident that their improved engines, highly-advanced new McLaren electronic engine controls and improved engine designs can keep the power but gain reliability. Most of the field is hoping that isn't true. Renna is a proven winner, Saveedra has a big reputation and the team is often called "country boys with skills". If Menard's engines are good, this team will be as well.

Rahal-Letterman-Lanigan is on a roll coming into 2012 after massively improving in 2011, and they have landed a big surprise in getting Ferrari to agree to allow the usage of its wild Flat-12 Formula One motor in an Indycar. Some have said that the engine is likely to be much too fragile for use on big ovals, but Rahal doesn't think so. Team co-owner David Letterman has said that this is the year he thinks he'll be having his Indycar champ on his highly-rated late-night TV show, and with huge sponsorship from Wal-Mart, PepsiCo and SABMiller, money is not lacking in any way, and AJ Allmendinger is a proven hot shoe, and sportscar gun Braun and the beautiful touring car ace Mann come with big reputations.

Panther may be without J.R. Hildebrand and Sam Hornish Jr. now, but don't count these guys out of anything. Scott Speed's dash for glory in the Indy 500 made a legend out of the lead-footed young man, and veteran Alex Tagliani is there to make sure him and teammate Wade Cunningham are able to run successfully. Panther has always been well-regarded, especially on ovals, but this team is one which many believe is capable of contending for a championship.

Dan Gurney's legendary team drives into 2012 in its second year after switching from their own Eagle chassis to Riley and Scott chassis, but the development of them has made them better every year, and the team of Dan's talented son Alex and veteran series champ Dan Wheldon is not a team to take lightly. Many have said that the AAR effort leaves much to be desired, but many people aren't so sure, and as the R&S chassis is now common in the field (also used by Ganassi, Menard and Panther), the team says its efforts won't be in vain.

Sarah Fisher's third-year team now has their boss back in the car after the birth of her second child late in 2011 - apparently, Sarah just likes racing too much, it seems. Fisher, one of the first female winners in Indycars, has what is very much a family-based team but a professonal one, and one that has impressed much of the field, so much so that when AJ Foyt went looking for a B-Team to help with the development of his Coyote chassis project, Fisher was the most logical choice. Sarah herself has plenty of unfinished business in the series, and new teammate Anthony Lazzaro, nicknamed the "Southern Boy" by Foyt, is known for his heavy right foot. Small team be damned, these guys mean business.

When Adrian Fernandez became an owner-driver in 2000, not many people were impressed with the idea of an all-Mexican team. Those people aren't laughing anymore. Fernandez' team now has four drivers, all Mexicans, and a raft of sponsorship from the native country they all share. Memo Rojas is the young gun of the team and a serious wheelman, and Fernandez, Dominguez and Jourdain are all guys who know how to win. Their 2012 designation as Honda's second factory squad adds to this, as it means Honda's prodigious support is now easily available to them. Fernandez has stated he wants to be a champion before he retires, and even nearing age 50 as he is, he's still got the skill to win.

Vector Automotive continues its wicked expansion into Indycars for 2012, namely getting in to groom its future F1 drivers. Kyle Busch's similarly-aggressive brother Kurt, after years in the NASCAR arena, moves to Indycars, with Half-Native Canadian woman Ariel Hill and veteran Scott Dixon as teammates. The former Bettenhausen team is nothing to scoff at, and all American race fans are well aware of the exploits of Vector in the Formula One World Championship. New or not, this team is not to be discounted under any circumstances.

Dale Coyne's team, once upon a time, was the bottom-feeder of the Indycar paddock, barely hanging on......but dedication and passion paid well for both Coyne and his co-owner, NFL legend Walter Payton, who is a very passionate supporter of the sport and has served to introduce it to many markets it would otherwise never have been known in. Coyne's 2012 driver lineup is said to be the strongest ever, with persistent Frenchman Nelson Phillipe, fast-footed Dutchman Robert Doornbos and American racer Michael McDowell, all of which have extensive open wheel car experience, and sponsorship has not been hard to find for them, with the team's excellent results in 2011.

How The Field Lines Up

The way drivers qualify for events is simple. For the first four races, the only guaranteed entry into the field is the defending champion (in this case, Tony Stewart). Every other car must pre-qualify on Thursday morning, with the number of cars in each field being set by the promoter, though most like large fields. (Small tracks like Barber Park only allow 28 cars, but the biggest superspeedways allow as many as 42 cars to race.) This sets the provisional field, but on Friday only the top twenty-four are in for sure, any car below that can be "bumped" from the field by another entry. At the end of the "Bump" session, the cars in the race are set but not their order.

Saturday morning qualifying determines the field. Every car in the race runs their qualifying, and the top twelve go into the "Super Session", where every car has four laps to put up their best time. Fastest here is the polesitter, and no matter if the top twelve Super Session times are faster than the cars, those top twelve make up the top 12 of the field.

The only exceptions to this qualifying procedure are Indianapolis and Michigan, which use their own four-lap qualifying system.

At the road/street/airport events at Mexico City, Miller Park, Detroit, Cleveland, Edmonton, Road America and Bridgehampton, the field starts in a standing start. It is only done at these events because the start/finish straight is wide enough to allow it to be done safely, and in large part because all of these tracks have frequent problems with first-corner crashes. This also adds an additional element of a challenge to drivers, as traction and launch control systems are explicitly illegal in Indycar racing. Debate is on on whether starting cars on longer brackstraights at Mid-Ohio, Toronto and Road Atlanta would allow for the standing starts there, too.

At the large-oval events (Las Vegas, Indianapolis, Michigan, Kentucky, Chicago and California) the field starts three across - this is not done at Texas Motor Speedway because the track is too narrow for it to be done safely. All cars are required to be fitted with bodywork that makes wheel-touching incidents impossible, this done after a rash of crashes in the 2000s that had ugly results for the drivers involved.

President Al Bundy

January 16th, 2012, 07:32 PM

Newman-Haas-Cruise-Racing? Noooo, please! Don't let one of my favorite IndyCar team be run by a scientologist. :(

Otherwise, yours and Chipperbacks grids look good. Although I wonder where Mclaren ended up ITTL.

TheMann

January 16th, 2012, 08:17 PM

Newman-Haas-Cruise-Racing? Noooo, please! Don't let one of my favorite IndyCar team be run by a scientologist. :(

He's an investor, not the primary team owner. He was looking at buying into a team during the Champ Car days, but it didn't happen.

Otherwise, yours and Chipperbacks grids look good. Although I wonder where Mclaren ended up ITTL.

A good question, that. Chipperback?

President Al Bundy

January 16th, 2012, 10:05 PM

He's an investor, not the primary team owner. He was looking at buying into a team during the Champ Car days, but it didn't happen.

Okay. I gotta accept that, I guess. As long as he's not doing ads for you-know-what. :D

Chipperback

January 17th, 2012, 02:51 AM

" I wonder where Mclaren ended up ITTL.

First, what happened to McLaren?

McLaren became more of a constructor along the lines of March Engineering in OTL. The three of the men who would have created March, Alan Rees, Graham Coker and Robin Herd, all eventually would find their way to McLaren. March was never formed.

The fourth, Max Mosley, met Bernie Eccelstone at a meeting of interested parties among the teams at the end of the 1969 season. Mosley became Eccelstone's legal man, just like he did in OTL.

By the late 70s McLaren was looking at being more of an automotive technology consultant firm and a customer builder than a forming a full-on race team. McLaren did build some pretty awesome race cars. Their M23 concept was a hit of the go-go early 1970s for team looking to compete at the highest level in the budget. It was also the early technical blueprint for the evolution of the Hesketh BRM cars that won the 1975 and 1979 World Drivers' Championships and shared a lot of the DNA with the Lotus 72 which became the Australopithicus of the modern Formula 1 and IndyCar.

McLaren research also aided Colin Chapman in creating the ground effect concept that built the Lotus 78 and 79.

By 1979, McLaren was a serious technical liaison to many major manufacturers and was beginning branch into technology investment in a manner to TAG in the OTL (in fact McLaren was a minority shareholder in ITTL version of Techniques d'Avant Garde and developed the prototype on what would become the Porsche 956-962-962LM-971WEC family of endurance racing cars that dominated the 1980s and early 1990s)

When Ron Dennis was looking for a technical partner for his Project Four initiative in late '79, McLaren balk firstly because of Dennis' insistance that F-1 become a core business. That is not what McLaren Cars and Engineering wanted.

And there was "The Split"

The FISA-FOCA Three Years' War (1979-1982), really turned McLaren cold to Formula 1 because of their relationships with a number of automakers involved and teams involved. For McLaren, picking a side meant leaving hundreds of millions of pounds sterling on the table. Pounds sterlings that was there for the taking in endurance racing and in IndyCar racing, which was rapidly getting their house in order.

In 1980, Ron Dennis found a dance partner in Ken Tyrrell. McLaren went on to building winning IndyCars, Endurance cars and making engine management computers that later ended up on everybody's Formula 1 cars by 1984.

Today McLaren is in the design business, the supercar business and the business of alternative fuels and energy performance research. Their two biggest projects involve fuel injection systems for NASCAR Sprint Cup, advanced multi-hybrid technology for LeMans and a next-gen KERS system for Formula 1, and in addition to a Brabham-badged, BMW-powered supercar line designed by Gordon Murray.

Next up...The 2011 Izod IndyCar champion was NOT Danica Patrick. She won it in 2009. Tony Stewart won his 5th IndyCar Championship this past season with a wild comeback win in the final race, after Danica Patrick mounted a 3-race win streak to force the final deciding confrontation in her farewell to Formula 1.

(for more-- Check out the Tony Stewart entry under Indy 500 winners -- My apologies for not making that more clear :))

"but I would say that the US is unlikely to have three Grands Prix."

In OTL timeline. I'd agree. But this timeline is different because of the racing-cultural and economic realities of the times. Also, the Austin, Texas event is co-sponsored by Texan and Mexican promoters (Adrian Fernandez's PR firm is doing the bulk of the work. They got Pemex on board).

Cue up "I.G.Y" by Donald Fagen and read on.

I'll start with the latter first. The broad economic and political framework of this timeline will be based mainly along TheMann's brilliant "Transport America TL" with some minor differences but the major points carry over. On that train of graphite and glitter. Undersea by rail. (http://www.alternatehistory.com/discussion/showthread.php?t=168298)

The ITTL 2012 has a greater level of technical innovation, industrial and economic prosperity in the United States and much of the industrialized world. I'm even hopeful to think that perhaps this innovation and ingenuity has and spread around the globe

What does this mean to the gearhead/petrolhead. It means he or she has a pretty good job and at a good wage. A way to get to work in many cases that not only isn't tackling his or her pocketbook its decreasing his or her "carbon footprint", too. Now what does that mean? It probably means that race fan has a little more money to spend and is more willing to travel to see a race, whether that race is in Rockingham, North Carolina or Rockingham, England.

And lets consider the racing-culture of America, and in some ways our total culture. The American Race Fan ITTL 2012 is more plugged into world motorsport than most racing fans would be OTL, and the same works in the other direction.

The origins of this? Read the lists of champions we have here. ITTL 2012 is a time where the history of racing has seen Dan Gurney win multiple championships in Formula 1 and LeMans, along with A.J. Foyt, Mario Andretti, the Unsers, etc.winning international races. The Indianapolis 500 to this day is considered an International event and gets a worldwide audience. You've had 6 foreign-born Daytona 500 winners, one of which came all the way from Finland. In many ways Americans have earned a place in the racing world equal to the respect Americans earned in FIM Grand Prix motorcycling racing in the 1970s and 1980s.

A.J. Foyt was as much a hero to young Eddie Irvine growing up in Northern Ireland, as he was to young Tony Stewart growing up in Indiana. And that works the other way, too. When I was a kid going to NASCAR races ITTL (You think I could only exist in a post-nuclear hellhole and not in what would be a nirvana for me?! LOL!), I had a Keke Rosberg #15 T-Shirt, and I liked seeing "The Yankee James Hunt"...and watching Willy T. Ribbs win in Trans Am and IndyCar...and saw Gilles Villenueve do that 4-wheel drift at Watkins Glen in 1983 past Alain Prost...and I got to meet Dr. Ayrton Senna at a symposium at Boston College last year...He signed my picture of him winning the 1988 Detroit Grand Prix, and then gave me an instant lecture on Infrastructural Microlending and Social Justice. ;)

You've had a greater American involvement in the sport worldwide and a greater global involvement in the sport here in America, right down to the manufacturers. In many ways that was one of the dreams OTL that a great driver-constructor named Dan Gurney had.

That dream was realized ITTL with Mr. Gurney, as a racer, constructor, and later as a Penske-esque industralist.

"especially as you have a pile of Indycar drivers in your 2012 Formula One season."

Well, the Formula 1 teams know where the talent is (lol!).

But actually the advantage is in IndyCar's court. More and more European, Brazillian and Asian drivers are looking at America, because ITTL, the development streams are stronger and are more open and diverse. Something that FOA Chairman Damon Hill is trying to work on in greater detail for FIA Championships, The WRC has the right idea, and that championship is becoming quite popular with more and more young drivers.

Even with the expense and sacrifice that goes into it, it is a good time to be a young race driver there is a lot of options, and you don't necessarily have to look like the drivers of the past to get a shot....

But it doesn't hurt to have a name....as long as you have talent...

And there some serious young talent. Grahame Rahal and Chase Elliott, Darrell Wallace Jr....and Jacqueline Cevert....and there was this cute little 13-year old girl in a quarter midget....and she was kicking butt and she had that smile...just like her wild daddy did a while ago.

Anyways, I did write Transport America with the goal of not just improving America's transportation but also its wealth. America's current OTL state rather disgusts me, not because of the people, who are just as hardworking and intelligent as they ever were, but because the business and political leaders are such short-sighted, all-about-the-Benjamins assclowns. In Transport America, of course, that isn't the case any more, and you are correct in pointing out that America's middle class, through better paying jobs, lower energy and transportation costs and the fact that they don't need to worry about paying high health insurance premiums, have quite a lot more money to spend as disposable income. The better air travel of that would probably add to that, too, and you are correct that said innovation and wealth has spread to much of the world, which in turn is forcing humanity to deal with carbon dioxide emissions and global warming much more seriously - though as usual, the Americans are ahead of the curve, with General Motors, Ford and Chrysler-AMC all being some of the world's biggest makers of hybrids, GM having pioneered the series hybrid - who else could other than the world's largest diesel locomotive manufacturer? - and both Ford and GM being open supporters of the development of high-powered clean diesels, cellulosic ethanol-fueled vehicles and, of course, hydrogen fuel cells. The overall result would indeed be a much bigger base for sponsors and much more interest for manufacturers, which also means racing in Indycars, or indeed NASCAR, IMSA or even smaller series like Trans-Am or the SCCA World Challenge, would be big business. That would draw in plenty of foreigners for racing in America and have the best American wheelmen be more respected abroad, but I still very much figure that Americans will want to root for their own, just as fans from nearly everywhere do.

You are quite right that international success by American drivers would grow the knowledge of European and Asian racing in America. (I'm still having to get my head around an AJ Foyt-Mario Andretti Formula One team. Anybody who knows Indycars knows that Foyt and Mario were each others' greatest rival for a very long time. The idea of them as teammates is, well, surprising, though it would probably get the fans to shut up from time to time about who is the better one. Or then again, it might just make them argue over who was the better F1 driver....) If the Indy 500 is as big an international race and you're saying it is, they may have by now bit the bullet and built the world's biggest sports facility out of it by building grandstands all the way around, though you wouldn't be able to see much from the backstraight stands.

TheMann

January 18th, 2012, 09:10 PM

So, what are the rules for the sportscar world in your world, Chipperback?

Chipperback

January 19th, 2012, 02:39 AM

I only have two

1. LeMans is an off weekend for every other major series if possible.

2. Petit LeMans in Atlanta is called "Petit" because its considered a Little Brother to the 24 Heures. Petit LeMans is still a 24-hour race.

Other than that the FIA World Endurance Championship is whatever you or anybody who takes up putting that series together wants it to be.

TheMann

January 19th, 2012, 05:04 AM

1. LeMans is an off weekend for every other major series if possible.

It's an off-weekend for Indycar, you made it that way for Formula One and I think it's that way for Al Bundy's WTCC.

2. Petit LeMans in Atlanta is called "Petit" because its considered a Little Brother to the 24 Heures. Petit LeMans is still a 24-hour race.

Petit Le Mans IOTL has always been a 10 Hour / 1000 mile event. Did you change that somewhere? Holding a 24-Hour race at Road Atlanta isn't possible because the locals would complain about the noise on Sunday Morning. (A problem Road America discovered IOTL.)

Other than that the FIA World Endurance Championship is whatever you or anybody who takes up putting that series together wants it to be.

OK, so I can say its about a series that runs on all six continents, with about 16 rounds, and is divided up into Prototype 1, Prototype 2, Prototype GT, GT1 and GT2 elements then.

Prototype 1
This category is the real prototypes here and is a pretty wide-open category, but require open-topped cars. This is the big bucks and big speed category, with major manufacturers being the most common (but not exclusive) entrants.
Vehicle Rules:
- Maximum car size: 4875 mm (191.93 in) in length, 2000 mm (78.74 in) in width and 1250 mm (49.21 in) in height
- All cars must be designed to carry two people and have a provision for a second seat
- Only open-roof cars are allowed
- Minimum weight (with driver and required fluids, but not fuel): 900 kg (1984 lb)
- Maximum engine displacement of 7000cc for naturally-aspirated production-based engines, 6000cc for naturally-aspirated racing engines, 4000cc for forced-induction engines of all fuels. Equivalency formula used for engines using gas turbine or rotary engines
- No limit on number of cylinders in an engine, as long as it meets displacement rules
- Engines restricted using intake restrictors to roughly 700 horsepower
- Fuel capacity limits of 90L for gasoline engines, 75L for diesels, 80L for natural gas, 110L for E85 ethanol, 83L for hybrid diesel, 85L for hybrid gasoline
- Maximum wheel diameter of 29 inches (including tires) and maximum width of 16 inches
- Rear wing width limited to 2000 mm or the width of the car
- Bodywork must cover all mechanical portions of the car, so it cannot be viewed from the top, front or sides

Prototype 2
These cars are also real prototypes, but subject to a few extra rules. Manufacturer entrants are not allowed in Prototype 2, and all cars must be available for any comer to purchase and with a price limit. These cars are slower than P1 category entrants, but not that much slower. This category only allows production-based engines, though production-based diesel and/or rotary engines are legal and the use of E85 Ethanol in the Prototype 2 category is legal
Vehicle Rules:
- Maximum car size: 4400 mm (173.23 in) in length, 2000 mm (78.74 in) in width and 1250 mm (49.21 in) in height
- All cars must be designed to carry two people and have a provision for a second seat
- Only open-roof cars are allowed
- Minimum weight (with driver and required fluids, but not fuel): 800 kg (1764 lb)
- Only production-based engines allowed
- Maximum engine displacement of 5000cc for naturally-aspirated engines, 3200cc for forced-induction engines, 4400cc for diesel engines, equivalency formula used for rotary engines
- No limit on number of cylinders in an engine, as long as it meets displacement rules
- Engines restricted using intake restrictors to roughly 520 horsepower
- Fuel capacity limits of 90L for gasoline engines, 75L for diesels, 110L for E85 ethanol
- Maximum wheel diameter of 25.5 inches (including tires) and maximum width of 14 inches
- Rear wing width limited to 2000 mm or the width of the car
- Bodywork must cover all mechanical portions of the car, so it cannot be viewed from the top, front or sides
- Chassis has a price limit for a rolling chassis (minus engine and electronics) of $220,000
- Engine has a price limit (minus electronics) of $40,000

Prototype GT
This category is for GT1 cars with bodywork resembling road cars, and all cars in this category are required to be closed-roof chassis with a windshield and two doors. The weight limit rises slightly to counteract this, but the wheels are slightly bigger to help counteract the extra weight. This category also requires the cars that are being mimicked to share the basic engine architecture of their road-going counterparts, as well as the limits in displacement. Many of the other prototype rules are the same as Prototype 1 though.
Vehicle Rules:
- Maximum car size: 4875 mm (191.93 in) in length, 2000 mm (78.74 in) in width and 1250 mm (49.21 in) in height
- All cars must be designed to carry two people and have a provision for a second seat
- Only closed-roof cars are allowed
- Minimum weight (with driver and required fluids, but not fuel): 950 kg (2094 lb)
- Only production-based engines allowed, must be the same engine architecture as the road-going version of the GT car
- Maximum engine displacement of 7000cc for naturally-aspirated production-based engines, 4000cc for forced-induction engines, 5000cc for diesels, equivalency formula for gas turbine and hybrid powered vehicles
- No limit on number of cylinders in an engine, as long as it meets displacement rules
- Engines restricted using intake restrictors to roughly 700 horsepower
- Fuel capacity limits of 90L for gasoline engines, 75L for diesels, 110L for E85 ethanol
- Maximum wheel diameter of 29 inches (including tires) and maximum width of 17 inches
- Rear wing width limited to 2000 mm or the width of the car
- Bodywork must cover all mechanical portions of the car, so it cannot be viewed from the top, front or sides

GT1
GT1 cars are the biggest and fastest of the four categories of GT entrants, the biggest of big dogs and all are based on the most exotic of road cars, including the Ferrari 599 Fiorano, Chevrolet Corvette ZR1, Aston Martin DBS, Nissan GT-R, Lamborghini Aventador, Saleen S7 and Pagani Zonda. Factory support for teams here is nearly universal, with departments such as Chevrolet's Corvette Competition Department and Ferrari's Corsa Clienti programs providing plenty of support to the entrants, though the runners in GT2 tend to be the closer to true privateer entrants. Most cars in this field use naturally-aspirated engines, though Nissan has been steadfast in sticking with their twin-turbocharged V6 engine.
Vehicle Rules:
- Maximum car size: 4875 mm (191.93 in) in length, 2000 mm (78.74 in) in width and 1400 mm (55.12 in) in height
- All cars must be designed to carry two people and have a provision for a second seat
- Only closed-roof cars are allowed
- Cars must be based off of a vehicle that has been homologated for use in the GT category, with a minimum production of 50 cars in one calendar year, and the vehicles in question being fully legal for use on public roadways in its nation of manufacture
- Minimum weight (with driver and required fluids, but not fuel): 1200 kg (2646 lb)
- Only production-based engines allowed, must be the same engine architecture as the road-going version of the GT car
- Maximum engine displacement of 8000cc for naturally-aspirated production-based engines, 4500cc for forced-induction engines, 5000cc for diesels, equivalency formula for gas turbine and hybrid powered vehicles
- No limit on number of cylinders in an engine, as long as it meets displacement rules
- Engines restricted using intake restrictors to roughly 750 horsepower
- Fuel capacity limits of 90L for gasoline engines, 75L for diesels, 110L for E85 ethanol
- Maximum wheel diameter of 29 inches (including tires) and maximum width of 15.5 inches front, 18 inches rear
- Rear wing width limited to 2000 mm or the width of the car
- Bodywork must cover all mechanical portions of the car, so it cannot be viewed from any angle
- Vehicles are only allowed to be rear-wheel-drive, regardless of the drivetrain of the vehicle of which the racing car is based off of
- Vehicles must retain the same floorpan to roof dimension, with chopping of the roof in the vehicle being explicitly illegal

GT2
Smaller and slower but still capable of putting on a show, the GT2 category is for very serious road cars that do not meet the standards of the GT1 hypercars. GT2 cars are also considerably less expensive, and thanks to considerable support by Porsche, Ferrari, Corvette, Ford and Lotus, the GT2 field is a big one, with tons of well-supported private entrants in both Europe and North America.
Vehicle Rules:
- Maximum car size: 4875 mm (191.93 in) in length, 2000 mm (78.74 in) in width and 1400 mm (55.12 in) in height
- All cars must be designed to carry two people and have a provision for a second seat
- Only closed-roof cars are allowed
- Cars must be based off of a vehicle that has been homologated for use in the GT category, with a minimum production of 200 cars in one calendar year, and the vehicles in question being fully legal for use on public roadways in its nation of manufacture
- Minimum weight (with driver and required fluids, but not fuel): 1200 kg (2646 lb)
- Only production-based engines allowed, must be the same engine architecture as the road-going version of the GT car
- Maximum engine displacement of 6000cc for naturally-aspirated production-based engines, 3500cc for forced-induction engines, 5000cc for diesels, equivalency formula for gas turbine and hybrid powered vehicles
- No limit on number of cylinders in an engine, as long as it meets displacement rules
- Engines restricted using intake restrictors to roughly 520 horsepower
- Fuel capacity limits of 90L for gasoline engines, 75L for diesels, 110L for E85 ethanol
- Maximum wheel diameter of 26.5 inches (including tires) and maximum width of 14 inches front, 17 inches rear
- Rear wing width limited to 2000 mm or the width of the car
- Bodywork must cover all mechanical portions of the car, so it cannot be viewed from any angle
- Vehicles are only allowed to be rear-wheel-drive, regardless of the drivetrain of the vehicle of which the racing car is based off of
- Vehicles must retain the same floorpan to roof dimension, with chopping of the roof in the vehicle being explicitly illegal

"Holding a 24-Hour race at Road Atlanta isn't possible because the locals would complain about the noise on Sunday Morning. (A problem Road America discovered IOTL.)

Well that's a 24-hour race Jacky and Vanina Ickx can't do this year. It won't exist ;)

President Al Bundy

January 19th, 2012, 09:29 AM

In case anyone is wondering, this is what a Corvette in Prototype GT trim looks like:

I thought more about something along the lines of SuperGT, but this one also looks good.

I need some more part-time entries, especially for the rounds in the Americas (plus Spa). I imagine that some NASCAR/IndyCar/IMSA teams have affiliates in either Trans-AM (Which runs according to class 1 rules) or the ATCC (Classes 2 and 3 then), who would like to contest the world championship rounds.

[1] The result of the merger between Turismo Carratera from Argentina and Stock Car Brazil.
[2] The BNL Touring Car Series was the result of a merger between the Belgian and Dutch touring car series. Nowadays the series does four races in the Netherlands and Belgium each, two in Luxemburg, one in France and one in Germany (usually at the Nürburgring).
[3] Result of the merger between both Iberian touring car championships.
[4] An off-season series which runs on three Canadian and three American circuit and is contested by teams and drivers from both series (Although some guest starters from around the world start here and there, too), although the CanAm name was just adopted for pragmatic reasons.
[5] The series runs clearly under the shadows of the Australian V8 Supercars championship, one of the few touring car championships that doesn't run to FIA rules.

Chipperback

January 21st, 2012, 07:46 AM

" If the Indy 500 is as big an international race and you're saying it is, they may have by now bit the bullet and built the world's biggest sports facility out of it by building grandstands all the way around, though you wouldn't be able to see much from the backstraight stands.

The track at 16th and Georgetown Street in Speedway, Indiana is beautiful OTL, but in this timeline...It's a wonder of the world..

Indianapolis-Marion County, Indiana is one of the 20 largest U.S. metro areas ITTL 2012, because of the growth of Tony Hulman's pride and joy and the cottage industry that grew around automotive research in the area. Most of the major automotive technology firms and automakers have offices and labs in Indianapolis. Ferrari, Lambourghini, McLaren, GM, Ford, Chrysler American Motors, even Cherry and Brilliance are building technology centers here.

And a lot of central Indiana is growing right along with it, and the local racing series and dirt tracks have benefitted. Head out to Claremont and check out Classy Chassis Raceway Park, home of the "Night Before The 500", and the NHRA U.S. Nationals. The USAC certified course is a gem, and a template for the soon-to-be completed Tony Stewart Speed Bowl.

Indianapolis is a wild, fun mix of cosmopolitan and Middle America.

How Cosmopolitan? "Late Night With David Letterman" is done live from his main studio overlooking the Veteran's Memorial in Downtown Indy.

How Middle American? The Indianapolis 500 still sells the Krogers-Superconfex Boxed Lunch, you can hear the race every memorial day on WIBC NewsTalk Indiana.

TheMann

January 22nd, 2012, 05:13 AM

The track at 16th and Georgetown Street in Speedway, Indiana is beautiful OTL, but in this timeline...It's a wonder of the world..

In this world, I would guess that the facility has a major museum/Indycar Series corporate offices/media center/technology center on the back stretch with VIP boxes above that, and the stands now are double-deck all the way between the entry to Turn Four to the exit of Turn Two, with glassed-in stairways to upper decks. The timing stand on the front stretch now has 43 car numbers instead of 33, the stands on the inside of the front straight have awnings as well. Jumbotrons on the inside of Turn Four and Turn One show the race video feed live on the screen, no commercials. The seating at Indy is actual stadium-type seating, complete with cupholders, and new stands are built at a steeper angle than before to give better sightlines. The Pagoda was rebuilt in the early to mid 2000s during the renovation of all of the front stretch. The Indy Road Course was built inside the oval, though it is a different layout than the F1 one, and the area around the track includes a top-class golf course that hosted a round of the PGA Tour in 2005 and again in 2008. The paddock at the track includes air-conditioned garages and other amenities.

The track was evaluated for tax purposes in 2008 at a value of $1.62 Billion, though the city does not charge tax to the speedway to any real degree - its too much of a cash cow and famous landmark for the city, and while the city's NFL and NBA teams are also noteworthy, Indianapolis is still best known as the "Home of the 500" and as one of America's primary automotive research centers.

Indianapolis-Marion County, Indiana is one of the 20 largest U.S. metro areas ITTL 2012, because of the growth of Tony Hulman's pride and joy and the cottage industry that grew around automotive research in the area. Most of the major automotive technology firms and automakers have offices and labs in Indianapolis. Ferrari, Lambourghini, McLaren, GM, Ford, Chrysler American Motors, even Cherry and Brilliance are building technology centers here.

And a lot of central Indiana is growing right along with it, and the local racing series and dirt tracks have benefitted. Head out to Claremont and check out Classy Chassis Raceway Park, home of the "Night Before The 500", and the NHRA U.S. Nationals. The USAC certified course is a gem, and a template for the soon-to-be completed Tony Stewart Speed Bowl.

Indianapolis is a wild, fun mix of cosmopolitan and Middle America.

How Cosmopolitan? "Late Night With David Letterman" is done live from his main studio overlooking the Veteran's Memorial in Downtown Indy.

How Middle American? The Indianapolis 500 still sells the Krogers-Superconfex Boxed Lunch, you can hear the race every memorial day on WIBC NewsTalk Indiana.

I can just envision a Ferrari research center in Indianapolis, with the newest Ferrari road cars turning up just as often on the streets of Indianapolis as they turn up on the roads outside of Maranello.... :D

In this world, I might have to add a major Detroit-Indianapolis high-speed rail line just for the auto industry people shuttling between two of the three "gems of the Midwest", Detroit and Indianapolis.

NOTE: Not all of these cars will be at every race, but most will be, hence the problems with splitting up the races at different tracks.

Unknown

January 24th, 2012, 12:14 AM

What's the PoD for this, Chip?

Love TTL.

Chipperback

January 24th, 2012, 12:27 PM

Unknown, there's quite a few of them that led to motorsport being even bigger ITTL. In this alternate 2012, motor racing rivals soccer worldwide, and rivals the National Football League in the United States. It is a global sport in all of its major forms. It has diversity of participants, manufacturers and venues.

So how did we get here, anyway?

The Really Big Bangs.

1. The Rear Engine Revolution was earlier.

In OTL, you started seeing rear engined cars in Grand Prix and Indianapolis around 1961. ITTL, the British "garagistes" started putting the horse before the cart circa 1955 in both venues.

In 1959, Stirling Moss took his Cooper-Climax and and went on a worldwide victory tour, winning both the Formula 1 championship and the Indianapolis 500. The whole world took notice. The rear engine car was here to stay.

2. Indianapolis didn't resist the British Invasion. They joined it.

In 1960, Jim Rathmann won the Indianapolis 500, in the last victory for a front-engined at Indy.

In 1961, the A.J. Watsons, George Bignottis and Jim Halls were showing up in their own rear-engined cars. All of Indy studied the Cooper and put an American twist on it.

But Enzo Ferrari did everybody one better with the shark-nosed Ferrari 256/Indy. Californian Phil Hill gave Enzo his dream of winning Indy, and it added the glamour of the race.

By 1963, all 33 cars on the starting grid at Indy were rear engined. That year was a classic 500 where Eddie Sachs, A.J. Foyt, and Jim Clark dueled for 500 miles, with the popular Sachs getting one of the great wins Indy history.

The Indianapolis 500 truly became of one of the great events on the worldwide racing calendar in the 1960. Tony Hulman's racetrack became a tourist spot in those days, and it only grew....and that's leads to...

3. American Motorsport was part of the world scene, and stayed a part of it.

In OTL 1960s, Carol Shelby, Ford, Dan Gurney, Phil Hill, Richie Ginther and entire field of American during May in Indiana, took on the world and were glad to do it.

In ITTL 1960, They did the same, only it was even more intense. American automakers fought at the cutting edge in the 1960s and kept that edge in 1970s.

Also American drivers did the same in the 1960s and 1970s. Many of the top wheels in the USAC National Championship drove sportscars and Formula 1 cars. The Ford "strike forces" that went to LeMans brought even greater amounts of American firepower..and they didn't stop and go insular in the 1960s, it grew well into the 1970s, 1980...all the way to now..

A number of top Americans also contesting the major world championships in Formula 1 and endurance racing. A.J. Foyt and Mario Andretti both won Formula 1 championships. American LeMans winners included Mario (1980, 1987) and A.J (1967, 1969)....along with Richie Ginther (with Foyt 1969), Tony Adamowicz (1973), Wally Dallenbach, Lloyd Ruby (with Foyt in '69), Al Unser (1971) and Bobby Unser (teamed with Mario and Hans Stuck in 1980).

Formula 1 fans still rave about "Colin's Chapman's American Dream Team" The unlikely coupling of rivals Foyt and Andretti which brought Lotus back-to-back championships in '77 and '78.

And that flow worked the other way as well. America's Can-Am series was a happening of the 1970s. Back then the International Race of Champions was truly that (although it may get the way again with its return in a new format in 2013).

And how about the ultimate down-home American racing spectacle, NASCAR's Daytona 500?

, British drivers won the "Great American Race" four times. A Canadian won it once. Daytona was also won by a Finn and an Australian. Since Jackie Oliver's upset win in 1972, drivers from 15 nations have made at least one 500 start.

And diversity was also within American racing. Wendell Scott, a black, hard-driving privateer from Danville, Virginia broke the color barrier in stock cars 13 years after Joie Ray did at Indianapolis. Scott won the 1968 Daytona 500.

The owner of the team that Scott raced with for much of his pioneering career was a man who's exploit greatly influenced, a sport and a nation.

4. Daniel Sexton Gurney

In OTL Dan Gurney is known as one of the greatest of American racers. He was a respected driver on the world scene and it one of the early pioneer in racing engineering and safety.

In ITTL, Dan Gurney was all those things...and more....It's that "more" that only changed his destiny, it changed American motorsports, American motoring and he did a lot of making motorsport the trillion-dollar multinational spectacle it is today.

"I respected all of the courageous men I raced against. However, Dan Gurney goes beyond respect. Every race day, he was the one man I feared because of his talent and his heart." -- Jim Clark, 2011

In 1962, Dan Gurney and Jim Clark waged a season-long battle that Formula 1 fans of the time still talk about. There rivalry through the years was the template for 1967 film "Grand Prix". (The movie won the Academy Award for Best Picture. James Garner won Best Actor for his portrayal of Pete Aron, who's character was based on Gurney)

Dan Gurney won the world championship for himself and Ferrari, and became the toast of American racing. Gurney left Ferrari after the 1964 season amid a dispute with Enzo Ferrari. Gurney, however, had money and his good name as a champion. After winning the '62 Championship, he created a small firm called All-American Racers.

The World Championship created AAR, and AAR created an American icon.

AAR signed a development deal with Ford for the budding Trans-Am and NASCAR series. By 1966, AAR was winning Grand National races.

But Gurney, and Carole Shelby, and had a bigger goal in mind.

1967 was the year of Dan Gurney. He began the year by winning the Motor Trend 500 at Riverside for the 5th straight year, and then he went over to Europe with the AAR Eagle-Sheleby grand prix racer.

Gurney shocked the mighty Formula 1 teams of Europe, including the dominant Lotus team led by Gurney's archrival Jim Clark. Only two drivers won GPs that year. It came down to a 2-race duel in North America. Gurney won at Watkins Glen and Mexico City to clip Clark by 3 points in the final standings. An American driver and his American car had won in Formula 1. Gurney kept AAR-Eagle going as an Formula 1 team until 1972, by that time AAR was more than just a constructor.

Oh by the way, Gurney won at Indianapolis, too...He took the 500 in 1970. The '70 season was be his last in competitive racing. Gurney traded his crash helmet for a business suit. All-American Racers was becoming a player in the automotive industry.

He was an engineering consultant to to Ford, a number of British automakers, and Saab and Volvo. Gurney AAR even worked with Lada in the Soviet Union.
In 1974, Gurney bought controlling interest in STP and was an early investor in the innovative safety designs of a racing buff named Bill Simpson.

Add buying a piece of Cosworth Engineering, a minority share of Ford and interests in a number of diversified companies in automotive engineering and aerospace...and you have The Gurney Group.

In 1970 Dan Gurney was 2-time world champion and an Indy 500 winner.

By 1979, Dan Gurney's personal worth was around $400 million. He was one of the most respected voices in the automotive industry and in motorsport. His status as a racer-turned statesman was critical in four key happening that shape the sport and his country in the 1970s.

First, there was his break with Ford Motor Company in 1978, after Henry Ford II fired a number key engineering staff, including FoMoCo vice President Lee Iacocca. Gurney strongly protested, and Ford Motor Company severed their relationship with the Gurney Group as a response. A war of words ensued between Ford and Gurney that would last for 2 decades.

Second, with trouble brewing between USAC and the team owners in Championship Car racing, Dan Gurney wrote his famous "White Paper" in 1978 setting up the template for what we today know as the IndyCar Series Championship.
Indianapolis Speedway President Tony Hulman read the paper, and listened to Gurney. The drums of discord died down in 1979. At the start of the 80s, Indianapolis-type racing had their house in order, and that house has stayed in order through threats of discord, including the 1995 crisis situation between CART and Tony George which was quickly defused by a working group of drivers, owners working together. The OTL CART-IRL split didn't happen ITTL.

At the same time, Formula 1 was in disorder. The battle between FISA-FOCA boiled over. 1980 was the first split Formula 1 season. Federation Internationale du Sport Automobile (FISA) and their teams ran a series. Formula One Constructors' Association (FOCA) and their teams ran a series.

In the UK, the automobile industry was dying. The endless labor strife of the 1970s crippled the British car industry. In a rush to rebuild, the Thatcher government looked to privatization. The problem was, nobody wanted to buy any piece of it.

The Gurney Group made an offer and bought British Leyland in 1981, immediately restructuring it to form Gurney Austin Rover Motors.

Gurney's first action was the make peace with the unions. It wasn't easy, but Gurney's team of American mavericks brought an Iacocca-style approach of shared sacrifice and vision. Whereas many unions and management stayed at odds in 1980s Britiain, the auto industry became the opposite case within a year. A dying British Leyland, became a roaring new Austin Rover. By 1985, Metros were winning in the showrooms and on the World Rally circuit. Even the Mini was back, and the Mini was BRITISH! Austin Rover was the UK's top selling manufacturer, and they were making a massive return to the world market.

In ITTL, The Mini NEVER was built by Germans. ;)

"There was no way getting around it. We needed peace in Grand Prix racing, or there would be no Grand Prix racing. I remembered that crack by bloody James Hunt and I'd wince. Not only at the vision of it, but the mere idea of another split season. I approached Gurney out of desperation. I figured if he could get the Great Handbag, the Great Windbag and the Whiny Unions together, he could get Jean-Marie and I on the same page" -- Bernie Eccelstone in his book Eccelstone: A Cut Above The Rest

Gurney adapted his White Paper to Formula 1 and chaired a meeting between the two sides in Paris, July 1982.

Within two weeks, there was an agreement. Formula 1 would be united again in 1983. Gurney helped forge the first Eccelstone-Balstre Agreement. The set of rules that have governed F1 since, and in turn made a lot of people a lot of money, including Dan Gurney.

His influence stretched beyond cars and engineering. As Gurney grew in influence, he put his clout on Capital Hill toward legislation to build more railroads, towards more engineering research, alternative fuels, and transportation improvements.

While being a man of libertarian leaning, Gurney was also a visionary and a pragmatist who felt rather than government "non-interference", the better way was getting all sides on the same page. Such was the centerpiece for his 1992 Presidential Campaign with running-mate Brock Yates. The Gurney-Yates ticket shocked a lot of people and put quite a scare into both Bill Clinton and Robert Dole by winning 4 states (California, Indiana, Kentucky, and North Carolina) and narrowly losing 6 other states.

5. A United States of America that most Western Europeans would love to live in.

This is what my country is like ITTL 2012: Transport America timeline (http://www.alternatehistory.com/discussion/showthread.php?t=168298)

An industrially strong, technologically advanced forward-thinking United States that is wealthier, more secure, stronger and has a better standard of living in terms of our national production and our national quality of life by a wide margin over the OTL. Unemployment is down, innovation is up. The nation has a strong working middle class (Americans didn't oursource everything. We build stuff ITTL) with low medical bills (Universal Health Care built on a Scandinavian-style wellness model. Americans are among the healthiest people in the world and guess what, we like to walk and bike places!), a lower carbon footprint (Urban renewal and smart public transportation planning in the 1950s and 1960, less suburban sprawl, more inner city planning and development. Walkable, trainable and sustainable.), means.. "MO' MONEY IN OUR POCKETS!"

And we have to do a little something with that extra jingle in our jeans. And quite a few Americans buy tickets to see a race with it. ;)

6. An American auto industry, and automotive culture that races forward to tomorrow.

OTL 1970s Detroit was behind the times.

ITTL Detroit is in the scrap with the automakers of the world, and the art and science of the car is greener, safer, and still a lot of fun...even more so.

That has directly affected motorsport. Innovation through racing has improved the car for the better. And the influence of American know-how that stayed constant in the 1970s and was prepared for the challenges for the 1980s, in part because of body politic and business climate that geared up towards a more forward-thinking philosophy as opposed to OTL's short-term philosophy.

American auto industry is STRONG ITTL. Not "wanky strong" but in the hunt with the great marques of the world. Jeremy Clarkson does not ridicule the American car ITTL! (Okay, he does, but not nearly as much as he does OTL. ;))

General Motors: GM's people listened to chirpy little Texan on their board in the 1980s. H. Ross Perot and his management team took majority ownership of GM in 1987, and he put in place a number of engineers in top positions. General Motors is a world leader in hybrid-diesel technology (GM locomotives are a gold standard on the world's freight railways) in addition to making some great cars. Chevrolet, Cadilliac, Buick and GMC Truck are the American nameplatea, but selected Opel, Vauxall, and Holden models are sold in the United States as well.

Ford: Was hurting for a little bit when Lee Iacocca was canned in 1978, and decided to compound the trouble by pissing off Dan Gurney.
Ford took heavy losses in the early 1980s....until Ford got smart, and under the advice of FoMoCo board member Jackie Stewart, Ford of Europe top brass was put in charge of Ford overall. The results, a massive turnaround from record losses in 1983, to record profits by 1988, and a fun lineup of cars in the model years since.
In ITTL 2012, Ford is a go-getter on the track, off the track and in the budding green technology field. Carl Edwards and Lewis Hamilton just won in a Ford, lately :)

Chrysler American Motors: Lee Iacocca took over slumping Chrysler in 1978, and over a lot of infighting on Capital Hill, received a set of loan guarantees that became the company saving K-Car line and the ground-breaking "Mini Max" minivans.

Poor ol' Chrysler fought it way out of the grave, and it's purchase of plucky, innovative American Motors in 1987, and an AMC-affiliated engineering firm led by racer-engineer Mark Donahue, put Chrysler on the road to leadership and prosperity.

ITTL 2012, Chrsyler, Dodge, and Jeep vehicles have made "Imported From Detroit" a catch-phrase (and people like the commercial featuring Detroit Red Wings superstar Marshall "White Chocolate" Mathers) and there's more fun to come. In 2010 Chrysler formed a strategic partnership with Italy's FIAT, and the first fruits of that union hit the market this year with the new FIAT 500, Dodge Gremlin WRC Abarth (and its World Rally Championship entry), and the LMP-1 SuperPatriot Abarth LeMans race car.

"When it comes to performance on the track or the road, there's an American spirit of enterprise you can only find at Chrysler American Motors."-- Mitt Romney, Chrysler American Motors Executive Vice President in charge of Sales and Promotions, 2012"

Now those are the biggies...Some more of the sport-specific PoDs

1. Racing became a lot SAFER a lot sooner. We still had "The Killer Years" of the 1960s, but thanks to the influence of key legends in motorsport who escaped the grim reaper, the safety advances that came in early 2000s OTL, came 4-8 years sooner. (Ex: Hans device became mandatory in 1992 in most major racing series. The SAFER barrier system began to show up on racetracks in 1997, beginning with the first application which was along the Tamborello sweeper at Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari, Imola, Italy.)

2. No McLaren as we know it.
McLaren ITTL was a cross between OTL March Engineering, Lotus, and TAG. They built race cars, they build ridiculously expensive road cars, but they never formed in team, in part because.

3. Ron Dennis, he's too darn difficult to deal with.
ITTL Ron Dennis turned McLaren cold, and drove Ken Tyrrell nuts, that is what led McLaren not to form a team with Project Four, and led Tyrrell to sell his team to Jackie Stewart so "Ron Dennis Oswald Mosley" wouldn't get his hands on it.

4. Bernie Eccelstone: Jail-bound?
Bernard doesn't run Formula 1 ITTL. He was forced out in 2009 when a lot of securities issues caught with him. He and Max Mosley are current in the courts in the UK right now. But Formula 1 is in good hands, thanks to..

5. Damon Hill. Chairman, Formula One Administration.
Perhaps the greatest man on two-wheels ever. The multi-time World Grand Prix motorcycle champion, and the daring promoter who gave the world MotoGP was tapped to lead Formula One in the post-Eccelstone era, and he's doing a good job of it.

6. There's diversity on the starting grid, especially with these women-type people

Somebody will ask so I figured I'll answer. ITTL, Louise Smith still ran hard in NASCAR and for awhile, they weren't allowed in the pits at Indy and Daytona, and yeah, the closest you'd see a woman get to a racetrack is a driver's wife or Francoise Hardy in tight dungarees keeping lap times for Nino Barlini.

But there were some key PoDs that we have to mention in regards to how we get from "Hell No!" to "Duno!" or from "Divina" to "Danica"

Uh, Chip? Where's Janet Guthrie?
Answer: Janet Guthrie was still very much a racing buff, but her life took a different turn. In 1966 Guthrie was selected for the NASA Scientist Astronaut Training Program. By 1970, she was Dr. Janet Guthrie, NASA Astronaut. After three more years of fighting for a mission, she got her chance.

On July 19, 1973, Dr. Janet Guthrie became the first woman to set foot on the Moon.

"If a woman can be on the Moon, she can enter the pits at a race track." -- Dr. Janet Guthrie. July 19, 1973

But that wasn't her big moment. That came on May 29, 1977. That afternoon at Indianapolis Motor Speedway was day of history.

For the first time in speedway history, the command to start would be shared. Tony Hulman would say it on the track, with Scientific Mission Specialist Dr. Janet Guthrie, who was in space as part of the third Apollo-Soyuz Joint Mission.

On the ground, more history. Tustin, California's Arlene Hiss, and Britain's Divina Galica became the first women to start an Indianapolis 500.

But the big breakthrough to the top of the podium happened two years before.

June 8, 1975, Scandinavian Raceway, Anderstorp, Sweden. Lella Lombardi polished off her best qualifying effort of the season with a stunning win in her Beta Team Mclaren M23B. The Italian was the first woman to win in Formula 1, and in a part-time ride no less. Her drives during the season got the attention of Lord Alexander Hesketh, who signed Lombardi to partner with James Hunt at Hesketh-BRM in 1976.

Three years later, Lombardi was at the top of the world. She was the 1979 World Driver's Championship in a wild season that saw 8 different drivers hold the championship led during the season. She won the title in a driving rain at Watkins Glen were she outlasted Alan Jones, Gilles Villenueve and A.J. Foyt to bring home a second championship foe Lord Hesketh and championship for Italy.

Her triumph opened the door to the top series worldwide that isn't closing anytime soon.

Now hold up....Lewis Hamilton is here, so I figure there's a little color beside the tarmac, right.

Oh yeah, he's here and racing hard and he's won a world championship, and think he could end Seb Vettel's reign in 2012. But coming up, Mr. Hamilton had a few more people who looked like him getting things done on the track.

But we gotta go waaay back. In the USA black guys have been racing cars, since cars started coming off assembly lines, but OTL and ITTL, Charlie Wiggins and the Gold and Glory boys never got to race on the Indianapolis bricks. .

Point of Divergence -- Indianapolis 1953....A hard-nosed racer named Joie Ray, broke through. He had proven himself a winner in the lower divisions of the American Automobile Association circuit, and finally he got his chance to qualify for the Indianapolis 500.

He had a two-year-old car and a skeleton crew, but on Bump Day, he got his Offy-powered roadster into the show. He qualified 32nd. He finished 15th and was around at the checkered flag.

1954 -- Ray had won a top division race earlier in the season. He got some top line equipment from a A.J. Watson and showed people what he could do. He finished 8th in the 500 and was 6th in the series standing...Ray caught the eye of a team manger for Mercedes-Benz. The Silver Arrows were planning an assault on Indy 1955.

May '55 -- Mercedes brought their best. Fangio. Kling. and also drafted last year's winner Bill Vukovich, who was having contract problem with his team from '54...Mercedes also entered a fourth car...For Joie Ray.

Ray got a local sponsor as well. Crispus Attacks High School, the "colored" high school in Indianapolis had their students raid piggy banks to put the school's name on Ray's car.
CAHS had already celebrated a great victory IN '55. Their school basketball team blasted 1954 defending champion Milan High to win the state high school championship (The story of their win was the subject of the 1989 critically-acclaimed film "Hoosiers")

In qualifying, Ray ran 9th fastest. He was still trying to get the handle of the powerful Grand Prix-bred W196. By race day, he mastered the Silver Arrow...

On race day. Ray put on the performance of his life, as ended the day has the fastest man for 500 miles. The man who was wasn't allowedn the pits at Indy in 1950, was in the winner's circle at Indy drinking a big bottle of milk.

"A colorful day of history at Indianapolis. A black man in a silver car has put together a golden day with a blue sky above.. Joie Ray has conquered the racing world and has won the 500-Mile Race!" -- Sid Collins, Indianapolis 500 Radio Network. May 30, 1955.

Ray continued racing through 1965, when he traded driving for development as part of a special project. Ray's mechanical knowledge helped build the 1967 AAR Eagle-Shelby F1 Car. The Championship car of the '67 season. The American challenge to European Grand Prix tradition.

He was a part of racing history again in 1970. Ray was the crew chief of Gurney's "Project 200," with the goal of building the first regulation NASCAR Grand National race car to exceed the 200-mile-per hour barrier.

The dream was realized on March 24, 1970 at Talladega, Alabama. Ray's group setup a NASCAR Ford King Cobra that set a lap average of 202.377 mph.

The driver of the car that cold morning in Alabama? Wendell Scott.

Scott's journey was similar to Ray's. Ray grew up in Kentucky. Scott grew up in Danville, Virginia.
His driving prowess was well known, especially to law enforcement. Scott was a moonshiner and he was one of the best.
But he traded the running from the law for running for prize money. From 1949-1960, Scott took on every hardscrabble dirt track in the Southeast. It was hard living. This was the Jim Crow south, and he was a black man in a sport that wasn't.

By 1961, Scott had enough resources to drive on NASCAR Grand National circuit. The top circuit. With more talent that resources, Scott ran hard to compete and earned the respect of many competitors, especially the top talents of time.

"On talent alone, Wendell was as good as any of us. He just needed the equipment to show what he could do. That was one thing many of the boys feared. If Wendell got top cars and real money, a lot of mediocre drivers wouldn't make money, and the boys running up front had to step lively." -- Ned Jarrett, 1965 NASCAR Grand National Champion, 2003

The Civil Rights Acts of 1963 and 1964 were law. President Lyndon Johnson had thrown down the challenge to segregation. In many parts of the country, North and South, there was tension unease.

Others saw new potential in a new America that was already seeing great change with the industrial boom brought on by Eisenhower's Interstates and railways. Urban renewal and intense rural electrification was making an impact. With civil rights respected and protected, a burgeoning black middle class could bloom.

A new market for durable goods could grow among black Americans. Markets for things like automobiles.

One of those who saw the vision was Anthony Lido Iacocca. In OTL 1964 Iacocca was a Ford VP for cars and trucks. He held two jobs ITTL. He was the VP for cars and trucks, and the official corporate contact for Ford Racing. Any requests, ideas, etc went through good ol' Lee.

It was conversation in the pits in 1964, which changed NASCAR. Iacocca was talking about a project. A push to get a growing African-American market to buy Fords.
Ned Jarrett listened and gave Iacocca an idea. "If you want to sell cars to black folks," Jarrett said. "There's a racer named Wendell Scott you need to give factory support to. He could do more to sell cars to his people that anybody else can." (2)

Within a week Iacocca pitched a plan to the higher ups. Henry Ford II said, "No."

Yet, somehow..Scott got some good factory parts from Ford. Iacocca was supporting Scott under the table. In 1965 season, Scott won at Jacksonville and Charlotte. The first two wins of his Grand National career, but the best was yet to come.

In 1966, Iacocca tipped off Dan Gurney on a NASCAR operation he could buy into and get competitive now. By Gurney's name being connected to it, Iacocca could sell supporting the team to Henry Ford II, no matter who the driver was.

Gurney bought Scott's effort and signed Scott to drive for AAR Eagle. Only July 12, 1966, the deal was done. On July 14, 1966, Scott drove his first event for AAR Eagle, the first AAR Eagle NASCAR race where Dan Gurney wasn't the driver.

Wendell Scott took the Fonda, New York road course that day and lapped the entire field.

Scott won 4 more races in '66, and 3 in '67
1968, saw Scott in a new car. Ford's latest contender. The Ford Torino for '68 was promising car. Scott was a promising driver.
Promise met performance over 500 miles on February 25, 1968.
Almost 13 years after Joie Ray bested Indianapolis. Wendell Scott found himself ahead of the greats. He passed Cale Yarbrough for the lead with 23 laps to go and never looked back.
It was a shock heard 'round the South. Wendell Scott wins the Daytona 500.

He ended the year third in the standings behind David Pearson and Richard Petty, but Scott was winning a lot of fans. Not only proud black southerners and a growing group of black northerners, but the traditional working-class white fans of stock car racing were warming up to Wendell Scott. In the hard-working, simple Scott, many of those fans saw themselves.

By 1969, Scott was featured in Ford's print ads. Win on Sunday. Sell on Monday. And Ford was beginning to sell to black to make green. Even today, Ford is very popular among African-Americans, in part because of their support of Wendell Scott then, and Lewis Hamilton now. (ITTL Lewis Hamilton is one of most popular athletes in America as well.)

1970 was Scott best year. A second Daytona 500 win. The 200-mile-per hour barrier in Ford's "Wing Car" challenge to the Dodge Charger/Plymouth Superbird. In Scott's hands, The Ford King Cobra was supersonic, and Scott won 5 races, including the Daytona 500, the World 600 and the one race he wanted more than any other.
Labor Day Weekend, 1970. Darlington, South Carolina. The Southern 500 is NASCAR's oldest major event. And for years, Wendell Scott was denied participation. (1) All the way until 1970, and call by President Richard Nixon.

"TRACK OFFICIAL: "Hello?"
NIXON: "I am slated to give the command to start the race this coming Sunday and I'd like to request that a Mr. Wendell Scott be given the opportunity.
TRACK OFFICIAL: "We don't let coloreds race here at the Lady In Black. WE NEVER HAVE. WE NEVER WILL.
NIXON: Sir, If you want my participation. I suggest you change that rule. This is 1970, sir. Its time to step into tomorrow.

TRACK OFFICIAL: Listen, son. who the hell do you think you are telling us folk down here what to do? I Don't give a popcorn fart if you're Richard Q. Nixon!

NIXON: I am Richard Nixon. And my middle name "Milhous". Now I will be at qualifying Saturday and I fully expect to see Mr. Scott's car in the qualifying lineup. You don't want my friend J. Edgar looking through Darlington's tax receipts do you? I understand he has some files that pertain to certain track officials and the transport of illegal alcohol. You wouldn't want him to investigate that further would you?

TRACK OFFICIAL: Uh....uh....No-no-no sir!

NIXON: Good. See you this weekend. It should be a fine race.
-- Transcript and tapes provided by the Nixon Presidential Library.

Scott was allowed to race at "The Track Too To Tame" for the first time.

A crowd 70,000 saw Scott take out years of frustration in display of driving fans still talk about.

"We are seeing an absolute master of the game playing his best as Wendell Scott's first attempt at Darlington is a domination." -- Ken Squier, Motor Racing Network, September 7, 1970

Scott finished 4th in the championship that season, and raced four more years and finished in the top 10 overall each year. After 1975, he retired and managed his son's NASCAR career. Wendell Scott Jr. started 318 races and won 1 race (Talladega 1981 in a three-car dive to the line past Darrell Waltrip and Terry Labonte). Scott Jr. is best known as a crew chief. In 1986, he was crew chief in the Busch Series, by 1989 he got his first gig as a Winston Cup crew chief for Bobby Hillin Jr. In 1994, he was hired by Petty Enterprises to be the crew chief for a young driver on the rise.

In 1997, Ricky Craven won the Daytona 500 to start the year and was sitting at the head table at the Waldorf Astoria in New York City at the end of the year as Winston Cup Champion.
Craven's crew chief was Wendell Scott Jr.
Today, Scott Jr. is the head of competition for Petty Enterprises.

Hey, buddy...What about Willy T. Ribbs?

Loud. check. Brash. check. Got into a little trouble at Charlotte? Uh, actually that was in Kent.

Kent?

Willy T. Ribbs was a graduate of Joie Ray's racing school. In 1975, a 20-year-old Ribbs went over to England, and set the country on its ear.

By 1978, Ribbs was ripping through Formula Three and Formula Two. In 1979, He got his first Formula 1 ride.
He was signed by the German-based ATS team. Despite a good start and two points finishes , he wasn't retained for 1980.

In 1980, Ribbs was doing a test for the UOP Shadow team and Brands Hatch. After the test session, he took his Ford Escort Cosworth and pretty much drove the hell out of it. He was clocked doing 128 in a 45. Needless to say, neither FISA nor FOCA would give him a Superlicense.

But Ribbs found a home in Trans-Am.

Willy T. Ribbs: Trans-Am Series Champ. '82, '83, '86, '88, '89
He also did selected IndyCar events where he had to make the best of hand-me-down equipment. Sort of like Ray and Scott had to.

But just like Ray and Scott, Ribbs got a big break.

1990. Porsche's IndyCar program needed a success and fast. Three years one win, while Ferrari and Lola were taking the podium spots.

Derrick Walker decided to take a chance on Willy T. Ribbs, mouth and all.

He missed the 500 in 1985, but made the show every year since and ran well in short IndyCra stint with a number of smaller teams during those years. 1990 was Ribbs' first full season in IndyCar, and took Porsche to victory lane twice in '90.

May 1991, Ribbs was dialed in from the first day of practice. On Pole Day, one of drivers Robin Miller said was a Bump Day Master, became a Pole Day master, too. Ribbs put his Porsche on the front row, starting 3rd.

The '91 Indy 500 was a lively dual. Rick Mears, who has finished 2nd 4 times since his 1982 win, started from the pole position. Bobby Rahal had his Ferrari in the second position. The Ohio superstar was looking for his 3rd 500 win and the third for the Prancing Horse.

Behind Ribbs, was legend A.J. Foyt who was starting 4th and was fastest on Carburation Day. Fifth was defending 500 champion, Danny Sullivan in his Ferrari. Sixth was surprising 500 rookie Michele Alboreto in a third Ferrari.

And a little farther back were Mario and Michael Andretti starting 9th and 10th but still a threat. Just ahead of them was '89 winner Al Unser Jr. (8th on the grid) and Andrea Montermini, another rookie driving in the 2nd WalkerSport Porsche entry.

Ribbs led 74 laps, including the last 8 a trophy dash to hold off Mears and Michael Andretti to win the Indianapolis 500. The Greatest Spectacle in Racing had an African-American drinking the milk in victory circle for the second time.

Ribbs raced in IndyCar, IMSA and NASCAR until his retirement in 2001. In 1995 Ribbs, along with his mentor Joie Ray, Lyn St. James (who became Mrs. Willy T. Ribbs in 1993), and a diverse group of racers including MotoGP standout Antron Brown, IMSA sportscar competitor Bill Lester, 1980 Indianapolis 500 winner Danny Ongais, NHRA Champion Angelle Sampey-Affleck, NHRA legend Don Prudhomme and then-NHRA President Bob Gidden, formed the Ray-Scott Working Group. An organized effort to continue to bring diverse faces into motorsport. Unlike similar efforts in the OTL, which were more celebrity driven than race-driven, this effort was began by racers first with an emphasis on grassroots talent development.

From this working group, a number of efforts within the sport sprang up. Small teams in weekly series, Karting and the open wheel ladder grew. The fields at many dusty bullrings, kart circuits and local road course slowly but surely had new and different faces in the United States and around the world. Emerging markets worldwide began seeing more competitors coming from the Far East (Rallying and F1 became huge in car-crazy Japan and spread through the India-China subcontinent. Also the rise of Hyundai and Proton and major players in the auto industry was a factor), Middle East (Long known for prowess in endurance rallying, the Middle East was building talent in stage rallying and Africa (native Kenyans and Congolese are breaking into rallying. The end of Apartheid in South Africa and a formation of the Springbok "Amandla Racing School" at New Kylami in 1999 is bringing black talent into the sport for the first time in that part of the world. This effort received technical assistance from the RSWG beginning in 2004.)

Mr and Mrs. Ribbs also put their money where their mouths were. In 2002 the Ribbs' put together a 3-car effort driven by George Mack, Sarah Fisher, and Lyn St. James-Ribbs. All three qualified for the 500. Mack finished a strong 7th, and was rookie of the year. Sarah Fisher chased Gil de Ferran all the way to the checkered flag to finish 2nd.

Oh by the way, what about Sarah Fisher? She runs her own IndyCar team now, and last season they won two races. Many racing people and marketing people are really excited two developmental drivers she will campaign in a limited schedule of Star Mazda, Formula Hyundai and Indy Lights events 2012. A pair of 17-year old twins, Coretta Serena and Janet Mae Ribbs, both junior honor students at Speedway High School, just a couple of blocks away from Indianapolis Motor Speedway. They are young, gifted (both are being looked at by some of top colleges in the country), black, attractive (they get it from their mama), brash (they get it from their daddy) and can drive the hell out of a race car (they get it from both sides of the gene pool).

When not watching his own kids, Ribbs along with Max Siegel, a former vice president of Sony Interactive Entertainment, and hip-hop artist Jay-Z run Rocafella Revolution Racing, which has put together a group of teams to contest feeder stock car, sprint car and open wheel candidate after a grueling examination process that could be likened to the Jack Roush "Gong Shows" in the OTL since 2006. Three prized students have made serious jumps toward big time racing. Motorcycle ace Bubba Stewart will try to add a MotoGP championship to 2 Motorcross des Nations titles. Marc Davis makes his F1 debut this year for Force India, and Darrell Wallace Jr will do battle in the Nationwide Series with the Daugherty-Nance team. RRR will also run a two-truck effort in the Camping World Truck Series for Michael Cherry and 2011 Toyota All-Star Showdown winner Tia Norfleet.

So there's all the PoDs, earlier in this thread, there's a lot of tidbits on what some other racers are doing these days.

One of those racers got arrested at an Occupy Brasilia protest last night. ;)

Screvier20

January 24th, 2012, 02:10 PM

Incredible TL but two things what is going on in the world of drag racing and whats the overall set up of NASCAR.

Screvier20, if you want to be Brian France in this TL? Boys, have at it.

The only restriction is following the canon already set on the thread, however there is a lot of room to play with PM me for more details :)

The NHRA is pretty much to same at the ITTL, the only major difference is due to an earlier emphasis on safety in the late 1980s, races are still a quarter-mile long. The drag strips have gotten even better...And John Force is still running his mouth. :)

Holy s*** Chipperback, I thought your work was impressive beforehand. Having read all of that......Wow. You took Transport America and made it into a base for the best world of all for racing nuts. F***ing brilliant. :D

So, if we have greater African-American involvement in racing, I think we can safely have Bill Lester be something of a legend among these, with several Indy 500 starts and a very long career in sportscar racing. Perhaps he's part of Chrysler's little effort to go win Le Mans with the SuperPatriot Abarth? :) I did also have the idea of an all-female team to go try for that win, too.

Question 1: Did Mario Andretti ever win Le Mans here? It's about the only major race where he's never won IOTL.

Question 2: Whatever became of Pontiac, Saturn and Hummer? If you have nothing in mind, may I kick my little bit of Canadian nationalism and have Magna pick them up and sell cars under those brands? Magna has looked into becoming an automaker several times, even making concept cars in the 1990s. A more prosperous USA is going to mean a more prosperous Canada in any possible form, so I think it might be very possible here. Could also have Frank Stronach (Magna's founder and recently-retired boss) work with Gurney on Gurney Austin Rover.

[1]When new regulations were introduced in 2000, Audi didn't partake directly in the WTCC, as they preferred to stay in sportscar racing. But Abt Sportsline decided to built a car on their own, which sensationally won the championship in 2002.

Chipperback

January 24th, 2012, 08:00 PM

Magna International building cars? Go for it. Stronach acquired Pontiac and Saturn in 2002, after Ross Perot restructured GM to meet the 21st century.

Canada has their own automaker :)

TheMann

January 25th, 2012, 05:22 AM

Magna International building cars? Go for it. Stronach acquired Pontiac and Saturn in 2002, after Ross Perot restructured GM to meet the 21st century.

Canada has their own automaker :)

Sweet. I would be guessing that with that in mind, Magna would be a fairly big supporter of international racing efforts by Canadians (probably backing the Vector F1 team, among other exploits ;)) and Pontiac would be back in NASCAR, using the G8 bodystyle. :)

TheMann

January 26th, 2012, 09:02 PM

I also just had a thought about Gilles Villeneuve. Part of the reason he was at Ferrari was because old man Enzo thought of him as one of his successors running the company when he passed on. I know that he won't own it all or anything like that, but I think we can say that Villeneuve would have been involved with Ferrari's operations once Enzo passed on. Does that effect anything here, and if so, what changes at Ferrari?

Chipperback

January 27th, 2012, 04:24 AM

"I also just had a thought about Gilles Villeneuve. Part of the reason he was at Ferrari was because old man Enzo thought of him as one of his successors running the company when he passed on. I know that he won't own it all or anything like that, but I think we can say that Villeneuve would have been involved with Ferrari's operations once Enzo passed on. Does that effect anything here, and if so, what changes at Ferrari?

After Enzo died, Ferrari continued on pretty much similar to the OTL, however, the major changes involved the significant North American interests in Ferrari and those interest had a major stake in FIAT, Ferrari's parent.

Gilles Villenueve doesn't run Ferrari. Luca di Montezomolo does, but Ferrari's technical people ITTL hold higher positions of power. Immediately after Enzo's death in 1989, Mauro Forgheri, who was still with Ferrari unlike in the OTL, was the emergency caretaker Commendatore to ensure that Ferrari's racing operations didn't suffer during the transition. Forgheri kept the company together and focused during a critical time, and that is what led to the building of a strong technocrati within Ferrari.

A big piece of that technocrati was a funny-looking Indy winner from Ohio. Bobby Rahal's technical and business acumen impressed Enzo Ferrari and the rest of Ferrari's board early on. After Rahal retired from competition, he was offered a position on the board and was placed as head of Ferrari racing operations in North America, and by 2000, Rahal-Letterman Holdings became the center of everything Ferrari in North America, including running the lucrative distribution network for Ferrari.

One of the biggest piece of that network? Gilles Villenueve, who is the main hub for any Canadian looking to buy a Ferrari. He owns the entire dealership network for Ferrari in Canada as part of the promotions, and automotive investment firm he started in 1987. Villenueve, through real estate, racing promotions, and shrewd investment in Canada, combined with an economy in Canada which was decidedly stronger and more stable, is in a financial position similar to Roger Staubach OTL. He's a billionaire, he's on the board of Ferrari, and he's the most powerful man in Canadian motorsport. Along with Ron Fellows (who works in partnership with Villenueve in owning some key pieces of the sport in Canada).

Oh by the way..
Daytona 24 is this weekend..

And former Formula 1 champion and Indianapolis 500 winner, Dr. Ayrton Senna was there along with Raul Boesel and Mauricio Gugelmin, who will drive a Nissan GT-R in this weekend's 24-hour race. For Senna, this is first competitive drive in a major event since 2006. The Brazilian superstar, now a college professor in Brazil, is running selected events in 2012 as part of his "Racing For A Better World" initiative for a group of charities in his native Brazil and around the world. On Monday, Senna was arrested for disturbing the peace at the Occupy Brasilia demonstrations in Brazil's capital in continuing protest of President Jose Serra's austerity plan. The charges against Senna, along with 500 other protesters who were arrested, were thrown out due to technicalities.

WSoxfan

January 27th, 2012, 05:29 AM

How are the road courses (Watkins Glen, Elkhart Lake, etc. ) developed ITTL? If this is based off of your transport America series, then that would most likely mean more infanstructure for the road courses.

Chipperback

January 27th, 2012, 01:31 PM

How are the road courses (Watkins Glen, Elkhart Lake, etc. )

Watkins Glen is same course in the OTL, but the facility is vastly different. ITTL Watkins Glen has all the amenities of a Sepang, Bahrain or Abu Dhabi. Many of the great road courses in the U.S. have upgraded the creature comforts, because many of these courses also hold various FIA and MotoGP World Championships event as well.

TheMann

January 27th, 2012, 02:08 PM

Watkins Glen is same course in the OTL, but the facility is vastly different. ITTL Watkins Glen has all the amenities of a Sepang, Bahrain or Abu Dhabi. Many of the great road courses in the U.S. have upgraded the creature comforts, because many of these courses also hold various FIA and MotoGP World Championships event as well.

Gurney Group is the majority owner of Watkins Glen. And that is big money.

Dan Gurney is one of the richest men in America these days. Not Warren Buffett-wealthy, but Mr. Buffett and Mr. Gurney do work together on some projects. The Watkins Glen renovation was one of them.

TheMann

January 28th, 2012, 01:19 AM

Can I make one last request for this - can I have Greg Moore not be dead? I think Greg Moore could well be a major flag-carrier for Canadian racing fans and drivers.

WSoxfan

January 28th, 2012, 02:16 AM

What about Elkhart Lake? Sorry if I'm being pushy about this, but I've gone up to that course for five years and it really is a great course. Also, great work on the whole background for this.

TheMann

January 28th, 2012, 03:05 AM

What about Elkhart Lake? Sorry if I'm being pushy about this, but I've gone up to that course for five years and it really is a great course. Also, great work on the whole background for this.

I don't imagine anybody is gonna change the layout at Road America. The layout there is too good for that. I would imagine if the track hosts big events, there is good permanent stands, additional bridges, SAFER barriers in places (like the Kink at RA - Katherine Legge's 2006 crash there gives most race fans the willies), better maintained grounds (RA is very good in this regard) and well-maintained track areas.

WSoxfan

January 28th, 2012, 05:40 AM

I don't imagine anybody is gonna change the layout at Road America. The layout there is too good for that. I would imagine if the track hosts big events, there is good permanent stands, additional bridges, SAFER barriers in places (like the Kink at RA - Katherine Legge's 2006 crash there gives most race fans the willies), better maintained grounds (RA is very good in this regard) and well-maintained track areas.

Greg Moore isn't dead ITTL. He won the 1999 IndyCar Golden State 500 at Fontana, marking a season where he finished 4th overall. Moore switched over to Endurance racing in 2005, where he has had success in GT and Prototype cars.

He's also a driver coach in the Ron Fellows/Canada P1 Driver Development Program

Road America Racecourse and Resort is a fun place! Like many of a great road course of America ITTL still has its special charm, but it also has the upgraded amenities and safety features.

In the OTL Road America is a nice quaint place to visit in additon to taking in a race. In ITTL, that doesn't change, but it has areas that are more like The Hamptons than Wisconsin. Stunning luxury homes and resort cottage dot Elkhart Lake, and there's the Road America Convention House, nicknamed "Racing's Camp David". Many of the heavies among race teams own some property here. It's a good off-week get away for drivers and team owners.

As far as events, Road America hosts IndyCar, IMSA, and NASCAR Nationwide Series in big leagues, but it is a mecca for the citizen racers. Road America holds the SCCA-IMSA Runoffs each fall.

RJ TAYLER

January 28th, 2012, 01:18 PM

How are what the Australians call "The Great Race" (The Bathurst 1000) affected by the events laid out in this time line I wonder?

Chipperback

January 28th, 2012, 02:14 PM

the Supercheap Auto International/Peter Brock 05 Fund Bathurst 1000 is still the crown jewel of the Australian V8 Supercar series, but the circuit at Mount Panorama is also used for a round of the World SportsCar Championship, and there's an announcement coming in a few days the IndyCar Series will come to the Mountain in 2013.

Overall Australian racing is experiencing a boom period. The battle for the Dick Johnson Trophy (given to the Australian V8 Supercar champion) is a huge draw. The Grand Prix of Australia at Adelaide is Formula 1's season-ending party and a hot ticket to get, especially given that one of the top teams in F-1 is Australian.

The sport is surging in popularity and more Australian competitors are heading to the biggest stages in the world in greater numbers than in the OTL.

Mark Webber's upset F1 Championship in 2010, driving for an australian team with and engine co-built by an Australian manufacturer gained Oz a new respectability in International motorsport. The Brock Australia F1 team signed IndyCar ace Will Power for the 2012, and seeks to return to the top.

3-time V8 Supercar Series Champ Marcos Ambrose touched off national celebration 1 year ago with his win in the Daytona 500. Ambrose also hosts a charity race at Calder Park Thunderdome in December called the Down Under-Down South Shootout. A group of NASCAR Sprint Cup stars meet the best in V8 Supercars in twin-100 mile races. One race with the entire field in Sprint Cup Cars, and a second race where the field switches to V8 Supercar Ford Falcon SVTs, Holden Commodore 05-GTs. , and Chrsyler Matador R/Ts

Ambrose's example got a couple of V8 Supercars thinking of February in Florida. 5-time V8 Supercar champion Mark Skaife and 2-time Jamie Whincup will both try to qualify for the 2012 Daytona 500. Skaife will drive a additional entry for Hendrick Motorsports, and Whincup will be Ambrose's teammate for the week in a Boris Said No Fear Ford Fusion.

Early entries for the 2012 Bathurst 1000 have already reached the track. A group of F1 Champions, Jeff Gordon, Alex Zanardi and Ayrton Senna will all be in the field next year.

TheMann

January 31st, 2012, 12:39 AM

Indycars at Mount Panorama? Nooooo way, Jose. You'd have a driver death every time somebody crashed between the top of the mountain and the end of the Conrod Straight. Making the mountain safe for an Indycar race would wreck much of the track's character, too.

simssss

January 31st, 2012, 03:28 PM

What about Bernd Rosemeyer if he survive in 38( and then survive ww2)

MadMaper 13

February 1st, 2012, 02:04 AM

Indycars at Mount Panorama? Nooooo way, Jose. You'd have a driver death every time somebody crashed between the top of the mountain and the end of the Conrod Straight. Making the mountain safe for an Indycar race would wreck much of the track's character, too.

They are going to see a F3 race this year and i presume an indy car would be safer then an F3 car. So it is still plausable, The Pit Lane might be the main obstical though

TheMann

February 1st, 2012, 11:03 PM

They are going to see a F3 race this year and i presume an indy car would be safer then an F3 car. So it is still plausable, The Pit Lane might be the main obstical though

An Indycar travels a LOT faster than an F3 car. Sulman Park to the Dipper would be insanely dangerous in an Indycar, asking for takeoff incidents or huge crashes down the mountainside. Being fairly narrow and having no runoff at all in this area does not help matters. As I said, unless you want to really change the track layout, Mount Panorama is much too dangerous for an Indycar race.

WSoxfan

February 1st, 2012, 11:25 PM

An Indycar travels a LOT faster than an Indycar.
Stop making paradoxs.:D

The 2012 24 Hours of Daytona, the first round of both the 2012 IMSA American Sportscar Championship and the 2012 FIA World Sportscar Championship, was a usual it was a wild event. The weather was excellent for the event, and the massive field of cars entered into the event were forced to split the pits at the track, and they had to add a second set of pit facilities on the backstretch in order to handle the 97-car field for the 2012 edition of the race. With five classes of cars in the field and entries from all over the world, the crowd of over 80,000 people at the event got to see of sportscar racing at its finest.

The pole for the event was held by the Chrysler SuperPatriot Abarth P1 driven by David Donohue, Oswaldo Negri, Christian Fittipaldi and Johnathan Bomarito, with the Peugeot 908 HDi of Stephane Sarrazin, Nicolas Minassian, Alexander Wurz and Gary Kachadurian on the outside pole. The second row of the grid was the lead Corvette Racing Entry of Dale Earnhardt Jr, Kevin Harvick, Jan Magnussen and John Heinricy, who also held the pole in Prototype GT, a well as the first of the Panoz entries, the Panoz-Ford LMP15 driven by Ryan Hunter-Reay, Kristen Miller, Bryan Herta and Ali Naimi. Row Three was the Acura ARX-04 of Michael Andretti, J.R. Hildebrand, Ashley Taws and Buddy Rice and the second SuperPatriot of Scott Pruett, Robby Gordon, Tom Kimber-Smith and Alexander Rossi. The Prototype 2 pole went to the Alex Job Racing Porsche RSV Spyder of Paul Menard, Buddy Rice, Rene Rast and Marc Hoover, while the GT1 category the pole was the Falken Brazil Racing for a Better World Nissan GT-R driven by Ayrton Senna, Raul Boesel and Mauricio Gugelmin, while the GT2 category had the pole position held by Scott Sharp, Johannes van Overbeek, Dominik Farnbacher and Joel Weinberger in their Extreme Speed Motorsports Ferrari 458 Italia GTC.

For several of the GT cars, the race for them ended on the first lap, as a pileup involving nine cars happened when Carlos de Quesada's Shelby Mustang collided with the Chrysler Viper driven by David Pintaric as they came out of NASCAR Turn Two, causing a pileup when then Pintaric hit the outside wall and de Quesada spun as a result of the accident. The race restarted minus three cars that could not continue. The restart was better, but the green flag again last only sixteen laps, then the Audi R8 LMGT-2 driven by Allan McNish tripped over Sylvain Tremblay's Lotus Evora and hammered the Turn four wall. After the second restart the Peugeot 908 and Ford-Panoz LMP15 entries began moving away from the Chryslers. Engine heat problems began making the Chrysler cars slow down. In the P2 category, all three of the new Porsche RSVs suffered engine failures by the six hour mark, which allowed the Rafanelli team's Lola-Ferrari to move into the P2 lead.

As the evening came, the lead was being fought between the Corvette GT1 of Earnhardt/Harvick/Magnussen/Heinricy, the Panoz-Ford LMP15 of Hunter-Reay/Herta/Miller/Naimi and the Peugeot 908 HDi of Sarrazin/Minassian/Wurz/Kachadurian, with the Acuras ARX-04s of Andretti/Hildebrand/Taws/Rice and Brabham/Franchitti/Bremer/Edwards in fourth and fifth. The second Audi R8 LMGT-2 suffered gearbox failure in the seventh hour, and while that was replaced quickly, they kept breaking, thus causing considerable delays. Overheating problems slowed both Chryslers during the day as well. One Mazda-powered Lola from Dyson Racing suffered a massive engine failure which set the car on fire, and both of the Lotus Esprit P-GTs suffered electrical problems.

By one-third of the way through, the front three cars were all on the same lap, with the two Acuras and the Cytosport Aston Martin one lap down. The P-GT lead was massively in favor of the Corvettes, as the Porsche PGTs were off the pace and mechanical problems had slowed both the Audis and the Lotuses. The P2 lead was fought between the Ferrari-powered Lola of Team Rafanelli and the Zytek-Nissans of Autocon and Intersport. The GT1 lead was with the Nissans of Senna/Gugelmin/Boesel, Bernoldi/Zonta/Hughes and Campbell-Walter/Nilsson/Krumm/Ara, as well as the Ferrari 599 of Leinders/Bobbi/Barbosa/Potter and the West Yokohama Lamborghini Aventador of Pastorelli/Schweiger/Kowalik/Mallinen. The GT2 category had by this point had six different leaders - the Jaguar of Lewis/Wilden/Wheeler/Gentilozzi was the GT2 leader at the eighth hour point.

As night fell, the less reliable cars began falling by the wayside. Both GT1 Ferrari 599s had suffered terminal failures by nightfall, and the CORE Autosport Lotus Esprit P-GT retired just after 1:30 AM with an engine failure. The P-GT lead was held by the Corvettes, with the lead Corvette still fighting for the overall lead. The BMW and Toyota entries, steady but slow, were starting to move closer to the leaders as the faster cars began falling back with mechanical problems.

Just after 2 AM the yellow came out again after the GT1 lead battle between the Corvette Owners' Team Corvette ZR1.R2 driven by Tommy Milner blew a tire coming out of NASCAR Turn Four and massively lost control, rolling twice as it skewed off the banking and only a pair of incredible maneuvers by the Nissan GT-R of Mauricio Gugelmin and Sarah Fisher in the Libra Racing Radical-Nissan prevented a huge accident. The team attempted to fix the cars but were unable to do so - Milner thankfully wasn't hurt. The cool night was helping the Chrysler Patriots, both of them still soldiering on despite problems with overheating. The race restart here lasted just four laps, then the BMW V12 LMR4 driven by Martin Tomczyk ram the lap of Joe Sahlen's Corvette ZR1 on the brakes for the chicane, and the spinning Corvette caught the Team Lexus Lexus LFA driven by journalist racer Richard Meaden. None of the drivers were hurt, and the race restarted again without problems.

During the night, the lower temperatures allowed the Chryslers to make up ground, and the Donohue/Fittipaldi/Negri/Bomarito car climbed all the way back of fifth place, helped by a tire failure on the Highcroft Acura that forced bodywork repairs. The night-long battle between the very fast Peugeot 908, the better-handling Panoz LMP15 and the bullet-quick Corvette GT-1 kept up, but as they battled, the Andretti Autosport Acura and the lead Chrysler got back into striking distance.

As the sun came back up, 68 of the 97 starters were still going, with nearly all of the P2s still out there. The growing heat again began to effect the Chryslers again, but by this point the team was not about to give up their comeback - they took the chance of engine failures and stayed on the gas, with Christian Fittipaldi overhauling Ashley Taws in the Andretti Acura just after 7:30.

The P2 leader, the team Rafanelli Lola-Ferrari, brought out the next caution just after eight in the morning when the car's engine expired on the tri-oval, a heartbreak for the team as they had a two-lap lead in the P2 category at that point. That cleanup was fairly quick - much of the oil from the blown engine went up in a massive cloud of smoke when it ignited on the car's exhaust manifolds - but the first lap after the restart had a heart-stopping moment for Justin Wilson in the Intersport Zytek-Nissan when his right rear suspension failed on NASCAR Turn Four at over 170 miles per hour, and Wilson caught a tank-slapper that saw him use most of the track apron to get his Zytek slowed down enough to dive for the pit lane. No yellow came out of that, though Wilson and the Young Driver AMR Aston martin undoubtedly needed new underpants after that, and a crowd watching from Turn Four got to see the slide catch of the century. A warm morning saw what as looking to be the final battle between the top three cars, as the rest of the top ten, now led by the lead Chrysler, had little hope of making up four laps in four and a half hour, though the determined driving by the lead Chrysler said that they were gonna go for it in any case. Highcroft's continuing problems gifted sixth to the Toyota of Nakajima/Hirate/Tsukakoshi/Imamura, while the P2 lead was inherited by the Autocon Zytek-Nissan.

With just an hour to go, it looked like Chrysler's huge gamble might just pay off - and a crash with an hour and twenty minutes to go by Andrea Robertson in the Robertson Saleen S7-R put the Chrysler nearly back on the lead lap. With everything to play for, David Donohue put the pedal to the floor in an attempt to catch up, but the Panoz, Corvette and Peugeot crews also had everything to pay for, and while the Chrysler got back on the lead lap, it was clear by the final half hour that it was down to the front three for the win. A heavy right foot the Nicolas Minassian in the lead Peugeot put them into the lead, but Bryan Herta and Kevin Harvick kept him in sight rather easily, and Minassian's enthusiasm wore down the rear tires on the torquey Peugeot, which allowed the Corvette and the Panoz to overhaul him. The winner right down to the last lap, but despite earnest attempts to pass, Bryan Herta led the Panoz across the line first, with Kevin Harvick just 2.85 seconds behind him after 24 Hours of racing. Minassian brought the Peugeot across the line third another 44 seconds back, with David Donohue finishing a strong fourth in the Chrysler SuperPatriot. The Andretti Autosport Acura finished fifth, a godo result for them considering the myriad of problems suffered by the Highcroft Acura.

In P2, Autocon's Zytek-Nissan held off a strong late run by the DAMS Oreca-BMW to hang on to the P2 win, with the Libra Radical-Nissan outdoing the HKS Pro Team Oreca-Mitsubishi to finish third in the category. Prototype GT was a clean sweep by the Corvettes, though there was a 23-lap gap between the lead car and the second place finisher, by far the biggest winning gap of the race.

In GT1, a late-race misfire sank the second Robertson Saleen to second place in the category, allowing Formula One legend Ayrton Senna to claim the class victory in his first race in six years in his Nissan GT-R. Third landed in the hands of the West Yokohama Lamborghini after a steady and strong drive, as well as a little luck. GT2, after eleven different cars leading the category across the race, was won by the Flying Lizard Racing Porsche 911 GT3-RSR of Seth Neiman, Darren Law, Marco Holzer and Akihiro Tsuzuki.

But we have a contract issue with Brad Keselowski. Brad Keselowski is currently under contract with Penske Racing South in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. I don't think Penske or Chrysler American Motors appreciates a key piece of their marketing thrust driving for somebody else in NASCAR or IndyCar let alone Rick Hendrick (yuck!).

(from an earlier entry in the thread on the history of Chrsyler American Motors) 1994 was a tough season, success didn't come until later in the year. Bob Keselowski, a longtime campaigner of Chrsyler cars in the ARCA series, brought his privateer team to victory lane at the Mello Yello 500 at Charlotte Motor Speedway in a Dodge Matador. It was a surprising, popular win. The photo of Keselowski in victory lane in tears with his young son is one of the great moments in NASCAR.

That little kid in victory lane with his dad is well-known these days. Brad Keselowski won the 2010 NASCAR Nationwide Series championship in the snazzy Dodge Javelin. He finished 3rd in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Chase for the Championship in his #2 Penske Lite Beer Dodge Matador in 2011. He's on the short list of Cup contenders for 2012.

Chipperback

February 7th, 2012, 12:38 AM

Oh by the way...Speaking of NASCAR...Who wants to be to be Brian France on this timeline? I'll do it if nobody else takes it...

And we if anybody want to do MotoGP...Have at it.

If you are a petrolhead, get on board this train!

TheMann

February 7th, 2012, 02:59 AM

Well, I though Brad wasn't in the NASCAR top series. Oops. I'll fix that.

The 2012 Indycar series started off at the one-mile oval in the desert in Phoenix, Arizona, with a track that had been proven to be a wild one on several occasions, with its history including some massive wins and huge spills, and a long series of great races. True to form, over 40 cars turned up to run at the event, but the track was such that only 32 were allowed into the event, causing several worthies to go home on Friday. Most obvious among these was Kenny Irwin, teammate to defending champ Tony Stewart, whose day was ended in qualifying on Thursday when he spectacularly crashed missing the slowing car of Mario Dominguez when Dominguez suffered a front tire blowout. The first pole of the season went to Sam Hornish Jr, who had his rookie teammate Al Unser III on the outside pole. Ashley Taws easily won the battle of the ladies by starting third (Pippa Mann started 11th, Sarah Fisher 19th, Ana Beatriz 20th and Ariel Hill 26th), with Paul Tracy next to her in his Forsythe entry, but with teammates Buddy Rice and J.R. Hildebrand immediately behind her. Row 4 was made up of the Valvoline car driven by Justin Wilson and defending champ Tony Stewart, while the Penske car of Helio Castroneves and the Ganassi car of Tony Kanaan rounded out the top ten starting positions.

The event under bright sun, typical weather for Phoenix in late January - temperature of 71 degrees (Fahrenheit, of course) and bright sunshine, with a crowd of 63,000 on hand to watch the event. The cars lined up in their rows, and the race began just after 1 PM. The start was clean, but the clean race didn't last a lap when Kurt Busch ran into the back of Scott Speed going into Turn 3, which caused Scott to run up the track, and on his way back down off the groove, he was hit by Jacques Villeneuve and spun into the infield. The car stayed running, and Scott got it off the track quickly, thus the yellow lasted just three laps.

The race restarted with the pace rapidly speeding up. Paul Tracy quickly dispatched Ashley Taws and Al Unser, but Hornish proved a harder nut to crack - and more to the point, Taws and Unser had little trouble keeping up the pace. Behind them, Helio Castroneves led his friend Tony Kanaan up the order, while a poor-handling car caused Buddy Rice to slide back down the order. Tony Renna's race lasted 36 laps before his engine failed and he drifted back into the pits and out of the race. The Coyotes of Sarah Fisher, A.J. Foyt IV and Ana Beatriz began advancing through the field as well, though Foyt ended his day with a wall sideswipe on Lap 48 which caused suspension damage and brought out the second caution. Of the front pack, the only ones who didn't dive for the pits were Wilson, Mann, Mears and Gidley, with Villeneuve also using the opportunity to try to get his lap back.

The race restarted on Lap 51, and Villeneuve easily enough got past Casey Mears and Memo Gidley, but didn't couldn't get past either Pippa Mann or Justin Wilson, neither of the Brits willing to let him past to get a lap back. Of the cars that pitted, the Penske crews again did pitstops to perfection, putting Castroneves into the lead pack and putting Briscoe and Wallace back into contention. When the race restarted, the order was Wilson, Mann, Mears, Gidley, Hornish Jr, Castroneves, Tracy, Unser, Taws and Stewart in the top ten.

Justin Wilson and Pippa Mann took advantage of their clear track to put the pedal down, and despite his angry whining about it neither one would let Jacques Villeneuve back onto the lead lap. Pippa peeled off for a pitstop at lap 57 and got lucky from an unexpected source, as teammate AJ Allmendinger's engine failed just as she headed for the stop, failing before the bend in the backstretch. That massive engine failure left a pile of oil on the track, but only three cars were unable to slow in time for the oil, those being the cars of Adrian Fernandez, Kurt Busch and Scott Speed. Speed and Fernandez spun into the inside grass, but Busch was unable to get his car to turn and plowed into the outside wall before his car skidded back into the grass, his day finished. Fernandez got back going, but Speed's spin ended with his car against the inside wall.

Everyone who hadn't pitted at the last caution did so, but the pitstop wound up with Pippa Mann at the back of the field but still on the lead lap. Villeneuve came out of the pits ahead of Justin Wilson, but he was also at the back, with Pippa right in front of him. The cleanup for the mess took a while, and the race didn't restart until Lap 68, and that restart lasted all of fifteen seconds - Villeneuve, still trying much too aggressively to get his lap back, nailed the gas early and tried a hopeless pass maneuver on the cars in front. He missed Pippa but caught the car of Steven Wallace in the left rear wheel. Villeneuve's car jumped up and into the outside wall, but Wallace's car spun right into the end of the pit wall at 115 mph, an impact which broke it in half, with Wallace sliding down the pit lane and the back half of his car bouncing into traffic. Mann, Wilson and five others behind them - Gidley, Mears, Brabham and the laps-back cars of Scott Speed and Adrian Fernandez - had absolutely nowhere to go and piled into the wreckage, with Speed being much too late on the brakes and ending up with the back of Pippa's car in his lap. The Red Flag came out owing to a blocked track, and the cars were routed through the pit lane, while a unhurt by furious Steven Wallace climbed out of his car and went to angrily speak to Villeneuve, where the French Canadian spit on his shoe and gave him the middle finger, and Wallace promptly slugged Villeneuve the face before Wilson and three officials broke the two of them up. None of the drivers were hurt, but both Steven Wallace and Jacques Villeneuve got penalties for their actions.

The green flag came back out at Lap 75, the race now nearly an hour and a half old. The racers made up for lost time by putting the pedal down hard, with the top-10 at the restart being Hornish Jr., Castroneves, Tracy, Unser, Taws, Stewart, Briscoe, Kanaan, Rahal and Vasser. Sam put his foot down hard, and the front five quickly left the others behind, with Tony Stewart starting to slide back down the order thanks to an ill-handling car. Tracy and Castroneves' dueling gave an opportunity for Ashley Taws to pass both of them, and she duly took it, having to the take the curb on the backstretch elbow to get around an aggressively-blocking Paul Tracy, but Helio got his second place back just three laps after Ashley took it by an outside pass in Turn Three. The pace was such that cars not in the top ten were soon sinking backwards, and Hornish was knee-deep in lap traffic by lap 90. Helio used the lap car of Dan Wheldon as a pick to pass Hornish for the lead, but got the stunt used right back at him six laps later, Hornish using the car of Ariel Hill to do the same thing right back.

By the next set of stops beginning at lap 105, All the cars back to now-ninth place Stewart were a lap back, and the pace was getting high. With just 20 of the 32 starters still in it now, traffic was much less of an issue, but it still could be a hazard. Penske pit work put Helio through the pitstop cycle in the lead, but he now had Taws and Unser on his tail - and the AGR guys knew how to double-team somebody, and they proved it on lap 128, with Helio getting a poor run off of Turn Four and getting passed on both sides, with Taws on the bottom and Unser on top, to the awe of the crowd. Taws was held the lead until she pitted on Lap 157, where Unser took over the lead - Hornish followed Taws in, and this time the fancy footwork was with the NHCR driver, and Hornish beat Taws out. Unser ducked in on Lap 163, handing the lead to Tracy, who lost it three laps later to Castroneves when he pitted. Castroneves pushed his gas mileage to the limit, clearly hoping to only have to do one more stop, and he pitted on Lap 172, with Hornish back out front now.

Helio got lucky shortly after his stop when Graham Rahal slid into the outside of Turn 4 on Lap 181, bringing out the fourth caution of the day. On the restart, it was Unser with the slick move, passing Hornish in Turn One for the lead. He didn't have it long, and Hornish forced a mistake out of him six laps later and took the lead back, with Paul Tracy following him past. The pace went sky-high now, but Graham Rahal would be the last retirement of the race, with all of the 17 remaining cars making it to the checkered flag. Despite the dicing for position, Hornish and Tracy stayed out front, with Unser, Taws and Castroneves behind him, but Helio was taking it easier - still aiming for his one-more-stop strategy. Tracy laid down the fastest lap of the race on Lap 221, running a lap at 180.976 mph - a track record for a lap during a race.

Cars began cycling in for the last sets of full stops on Lap 223, with Hornish, Tracy and Taws all following each other in. Unser took the lead and held it until lap 228, when he pitted as well. Bar any yellows, all of the cars knew that they would have to take a splash-and-dash right before the finish, so none cared all that much about fuel mileage - they went all out. The exception to this was Helio Castroneves, who was trying to make it on one stop, and who stayed out as long as possible, only pitting when he felt the buck-and-stumble of running out of fuel on Lap 235 on the backstretch and dove for the pits then and there, handing the lead back to Tracy, who only had a lap before Taws passed him on the track for the fourth time that day. Stewart had sank back to one lap down, leading the cars of Ryan Briscoe, Tony Kanaan and Jimmy Vasser, with Ana Beatriz, J.R. Hildebrand and Sarah Fisher being two laps back.

Ashley Taws was the first to go for the splash-and-dash, doing so on Lap 282 from the lead. The Andretti Autosport Crew got her out in front of Tracy but behind Hornish, but Ashley took care of that on Lap 286. Unser inheirited the lead, but he could only go on until Lap 291, when he pitted for an awesomely-quick 4.4-second pit stop. He got out ahead of Tracy but behind Hornish and Taws, with Helio out front and stretching his fuel mileage to the limit.

Helio throttled back more and more in the final few laps, trying desperately to keep the lead long enough, but Hornish and Taws were coming too quickly, and while Helio took the white flag in the lead, he ran out just past the D-point on the backstretch and coasted along, out of fuel. Hornish easily overtook him with Taws under his wing, and her attempt to push him high in Turns 3 and 4 didn't succeed. Sam Hornish Jr. crossed the line first for the win, Ashley Taws just 0.586 seconds behind him. Unser held to third despite Paul Tracy's not-at-all-subtle pushing, and Helio had enough momentum to coast across the line for fifth places. Tony Stewart held off a late push by Ryan Briscoe for sixth, with Tony Kanaan leading Jimmy Vasser home. Ana Beatriz brought the Coyote home in tenth after a solid, steady run, with J.R. Hildebrand about a hundred yards behind her. Sarah Fisher picked up twelfth and the last open point.

The first road race of the year was held at the stunning 2.38-mile Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, Alabama, with a crowd of over 50,000 at the facility for the biggest race in Alabama outside of NASCAR of the year. The beautiful facility was big enough to hold no less than 36 cars for the event, more than the usual for a track like this but done in large part to get more action for the fans. There were 36 pit spots at the facility, and the track was big enough to have all of the spots used. After the mayhem at Phoenix, everyone was hoping for a more sedate race at Barber.

After the accident Jacques Villeneuve had effectively caused that took nine cars out of the race at Barber, nobody was keen on another pileup, and both Villeneuve and Steven Wallace started the season's first road race on probation after their brawl at Phoenix. Both drivers claimed the other was at fault, but most people asked about it were clear in their view that Villeneuve's foolish pass attempt had been the cause of it. Angry about that and with a point to prove, Villeneuve qualified well at Barber, starting fifth, while Wallace also qualified, though in his case back in 24th. The pole for the first road race of the season went to Justin Wilson, and judging by the fact that he had Casey Mears next to him and Mike Conway and Memo Gidley behind him said that the Lotus chassis were very good on road courses. Villeneuve lined up next to Ryan Briscoe, while Row 4 was made up of David Brabham and A.J. Allmendinger, while Colin Braun and Robert Wickens made up Row 5.

The race began to an overcast and fairly warm day, though not by any means a hot day. True to expected form, the Lotus chassis were very good on the road courses, and the front four - Wilson, Mears, Conway and Gidley - took off early into the distance. Behind them, Villeneuve, Briscoe and Brabham led the rest of the charging pack. The twisting Barber Park had enough straits to allow passing to be done, and the best road racers near the back - Dan Wheldon and Scott Dixon chief among these, began working their way up the order. The track was busy, but the 2.38-mile track proved to be very good at handling racing, and while the four Lotuses quickly got away from the field, they were battling among themselves fairly quickly.

The first run off the course went to Ashley Taws, who put the power on too soon in downhill Turn 3 and slid off on lap 7, though Ashley didn't let off the throttle and got back onto the track having only lost two positions. The track was tricky enough that minor mistakes were fairly common, even among experienced drivers like Villeneuve, Vasser, Dixon and Brabham. The front-runners didn't run into any real lap traffic until about lap twenty, and that more than anything was brought on by poor handling on the cars of Ana Beatriz and Wade Cunningham, while the first spin of the day happened on lap 21, when Charlie Kimball got way too much curb in Turn 11 and spun off, though he kept it running. A lap later, Memo Rojas' engine oil line blew off on the entrance of Turn 11, scattering oil all over Turns 11, 12 and 13 before Rojas shut it off and drifted into the downhill entrance to pit lane. Buddy Rice, Wade Cunningham, Adrian Fernandez, J.R. Hildebrand and Scott Dixon all suffered for that, Dixon doing three complete 360s as he spun into the grass and Rice breaking a transmission input shaft as he bounced back onto the track. The yellow came out, and all of the cars pitted, with the Penske and KVRT Crews being faster than the Lotus crews, allowing Villeneuve and Briscoe to be the leaders as the cars came out of the pits. Mike Conway stalled the car on his way out of the pits and suffered badly in his positioning as a result.

The race restarted on lap 29 with the front 10 being Villeneuve, Briscoe, Wilson, Gidley, Mears, Braun, Allmendinger, Franchitti, Busch and Tracy. Wilson was soon all over Villeneuve and Briscoe, who were also battling with each other. The Canadian and the Australian were aggressive with each other, at one point passing each other three times in one lap, while Wilson, Gidley and Mears forced them to stay heavy on the throttle. Behind that, a missed shift by Colin Braun coming out of Turn 10 cost him dearly, as that was enough for Allmendinger and Franchitti to capitalize on, and Dario wickedly managed to get the both of them on one straightaway.

The race for the lead was finally settled in favor of Jacques Villeneuve after Ryan Briscoe was way too late on the brakes for Turn Nine and ran off, which was also enough to allow Wilson and Gidley past, and both of them set to work on beating Villeneuve. But Jacques wasn't gonna be beaten easily, and even after Wilson retook the lead on Lap 46, Villeneuve took it back two laps later. Gidley soon sank back from those two, and he soon had Briscoe, Mears, Franchitti and Allmendinger in top of him as well.

The second set of stops for the teams began on lap 63, with one of the first ones in being Briscoe, who had typically good Penske pit work get him back out in short order, fast enough that when the stops cycled through, he was back on top of Villenenve and Wilson. Allmendinger ended his chances at victory when he spun on his out lap, but he kept it going and got back into the race. The pitstops were finishing up when the second yellow of the race came out after a missed pass attempt by Ashley Taws on Sebastien Saveedra on Lap 68 caused a rather big collision between them, as Saveedra's car rolled over, but landed back on its wheels and both slid into the gravel, neither hurt. The yellow's time was almost perfect for most, as everyone pitted to fill their tanks to the brim and get back out, allowing a sprint to the finish. Having learned their lesson at Phoenix, Penske was among these.

Restarting on Lap 71 with 24 laps to go, the Top 10 was made up of Wilson, Villeneuve, Briscoe, Gidley, Mears, Franchitti, Braun, Stewart, Kanaan and Brabham. The Lotuses of Gidley and Mears soon dispatched with Briscoe, but Villeneuve stayed right with Wilson, forcing him to run all-out. Stewart passed Braun on Lap 74 in Turn 5, but Braun forced Stewart into an uncharacteristic mistake, running wide on the exit of Turn 15, allowing Braun to blow past on the Run down the front straightaway later on that same lap. Brabham was hauled back in by an on-form Allmendinger, himself having Paul Tracy right with him. AJ put David Brabham out of the top 10 on Lap 80, but Brabham got it back on Lap 83, and David and AJ gave the fans lots to watch with their own close-fought battling through corners. Up front, Villeneuve forced one last mistake out of Wilson on Lap 86 in Turn 8, and Villeneuve took advantage, both cars blasting into the fast Turn 9-10 side by side, and Wilson backed off to prevent an accident, though in the process he gave Mears an opening and Casey took advantage, driving back pact Wilson. Justin didn't have any trouble putting Casey back behind him, but that battle effectively handed the win to Villeneuve.

After the chaos in Phoenix, Jacques Villeneuve came back to grab win in the second race of 2012, with him being just 2.264 seconds clear of second-placed Justin Wilson. Casey Mears arrived in third, with Briscoe in fourth and Gidley finishing the top five. Dario Franchitti finished sixth, with Colin Braun seventh, Tony Stewart eighth, Tony Kanaan ninth and David Brabham tenth. AJ Allmendinger and Paul Tracy got the last two positions scoring points.

Good morning and welcome to Racin' Radio powered by Auto Train..here on Sirius XM Satellite Radio. I'm John Kernan. this morning we have Ryan Hunter-Reay with us in our Daytona Studios...He was part of the winning team at the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona over the weekend, and before he heads back to Europe to get ready for the F1 season, he's spending time with us. Good morning Ryan, congrats on the win and ...thanks for spending a few minutes with us.

"My pleasure, John. I always start my morning with Racin' Radio."

"Ryan, an excellent race over the weekend. Helping to get Panoz out of gate with a 24-hour win. I hear this was kind of a last minute deal."

"It was in a way, John. I talked to Don Panoz while i was in Arizona visiting Eddie Cheever and getting things together for the season. Panoz came out and we worked out a deal over New Years, and I was excited about running the 24 and I wanted the seat time and the race time. I'm used to racing early in the year and F1 doesn't really kickoff until March in a racing sense. I felt the need to compete and I wanted to, and it just worked for us this weekend."

"Take me through the race. The Panoz-Ford wasn't the fastest car early on but it stay in contention..."

"The Chrsylers were so darn fast out of the gate, John. The SuperPatriot was a fast car, but they had their problems. The Peugeot had the flat-out speed too, but tires hurt them. We had a well-balanced car and we just a perfect weekend. The Corvette though? Those guys just wouldn't give up. Especially the NASCAR boys. You expect Nick Manassian to be fast, but Dale Junior and Kevin Harvick clicked the lap times, too. Bryan Herta was nails on the final stint and had to be. We were fortunate to win because there were a lot of strong runners at Daytona."

"Looking forward. The first testing session is coming up. The F1 Spring Training at Estoril. You are driving for the newly-formed Cheever Grand Prix team. What kind of debut are you expecting?"

"I'm excited. Eddie has put together an organized outfit. We tested the car at Sebring and I like it. We have good power from Renault. The chassis is good. We were able to shake it down and run some sound times there. It will be good to see how we stack up against the other teams. We have to prequalify for races, so we have to be on our marks when we go to Kylami and hopefully we can get work our way into the battlefield promotions early and get ourselves out of prequalifying quickly. That was Eddie Cheevers first goal for myself and Loic Duval. We want to get that pass into the Saturday knockout qualifying session, and I think we can. I think we will score points this year and definitely be a team that's running closer to the front than the back."

"What is the one thing you are looking forward to in Formula 1?"

"The tracks, man. It's the tracks. The new Kylami, Long Beach, Silverstone, Spa, the Nurburgring. No videogame can replicate what these tracks are like. I cannot wait to run all them all, and for all my fans following me on Formula 1 TwitterCam, I be giving you all the 4-1-1. I can't wait to take you all on a ride around this circuits.. I'm happy about this weekend and the win but I'm already looking forward to being a Grand Prix Driver."

Racin' Radio Monday through Friday...sponsored by Auto Train. Why rent a car, when you have one..travel with Auto Train.. and by SNCF America....It's the French Way To Rail...Here In America." ;)

Chipperback

February 9th, 2012, 12:47 PM

"Good morning from Daytona Beach. From our studios at Daytona USA Theme Park along beautiful International Speedway Boulevard this is Racin' Radio powered by Auto Train..I'm John Kernan...Today,a big show for you...with the NASCAR Sprint Cup, Nationwide, Trucks and Dash Series haulers beginning to pile into Daytona International Speedway. Another round of testing this weekend here at the World's Center of Speed.

This morning on the show we'll have Brad Keselowski, who quite a few people think be the Sprint Cup Champ in 2012. Former NASCAR Cup Series Champion Ricky Craven will join us as our Thursday Insider, NASCAR Chief Competition Director Mike Helton will come in to talk rule changes and we also have the Mattel Intellivision HD IndyCar Mash Up with Marlo Klain. That and more to come...

But first, in case you don't know who is who in the 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, we brought in a special guest to tell you.

ESPN's Allan Bestwick will take you through who is who in 2012!

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series 2012 Teams
Drivers who are entered in the Daytona 500 only.

Does Indy still build Lucas Oil Stadium (I guess they still get Peyton Manning, as per OTL) and is the Super Bowl still held there in TTL 2012?

Chipperback

February 10th, 2012, 02:12 PM

Does Indy still build Lucas Oil Stadium (I guess they still get Peyton Manning, as per OTL) and is the Super Bowl still held there in TTL 2012?

The National Football League ITTL 2012.

The National Football League ITTL is different, for starters there are 36 teams in the NFL now, divided into 6, 6-team divisions with an 18 game schedule that starts before labor day and will ends with Super Bowl XLVI to played at Worldwide Pants Field at Lucas Oil Hoosierdome (Known as Lucas Oil Stadium OTL) in Downtown Indianapolis, Indiana this coming Sunday February 12, 2012

The game will be brother against brother for the second time as the hometown AFC Champion Indianapolis Colts, led by Peyton Manning take on the NFC Champion New Orleans Saints and quarterback Eli Manning, who was acquired by the Saints 3 years ago after contract talks with the New York Giants broke down. Both Mannings are looking to win their third Super Bowl...2 years ago Eli beat Peyton in Super Bowl XLIV giving the long suffering Saints their first championship.

Today on Racin' Radios, we have the two quarterbacks and racing team co-owners on the show. Both Peyton and Eli own a stake in A.J. Foyt Enterprises, and we'll discuss competition on the field, but cooperation on the track.

Racin' Radios...powered by Auto Train...Why rent a car? When you have one. Travel with Auto Train....and by Dodge... featuring the all new Dodge Gremlin R/T Abarth...It'll make you look...See what the new Gremlin looks like up close...This Super Bowl Sunday..

Sneak Preview --- Super Bowl Ad 2012 by Chrysler American Motors.

A slightly dorky computer office type in a Van Heusen shirt and a part of khakis is walking down a downtown street..Maybe downtown...Indianapolis...on a spring day...

He has his mocha latte and shy smile...when he stops....He see something parked at that space....

It's black...red sleek with a low profile...and sexy black heels...

Audriana Lima is fixing her shoe, when she notices the admirer looking at her bent over..

"Excuse me!" she snaps...as she walks over to him...

SLAP! "Did you see something you like?"

She caresses him..."You couldn't help looking could you...Wondering...what it would feel like..."

She has impish look in her eye...and small Abarth scorpion stitched on her mini-dress.

"Wouldn't you love the chance..." she cooed.

"The next instant...He is in the vehicle....It just him and the Gremlin R/T Abarth...charging through some twisty road....And he is enjoying her. Yes, he is enjoying her.

Audriana: "The new Dodge Gremlin R/T Abarth...It'll make you look." :cool:

Screvier20

February 10th, 2012, 03:03 PM

The National Football League ITTL is different, for starters there are 36 teams in the NFL now

I'm thinking these cities for NFL teams.

Los Angeles
Toronto
Vancouver
Las Vegas

As for the MLB, NBA, and NHL I'm thinking 32 teams each. MLB Washington and Portland(Expos stay in Montreal). NBA Oklahoma City and Las Vegas(Supersonics stay in Seattle). NHL Quebec City and Las Vegas.

Good Work, Chipperback now i'm going to Follow High School Sports too, So I Will Focus on Drill Teams (Which will incorporated Dance Styles, Technical Work, Singing and depending on the routine, pompon and/or cheers)

In Case Your Wondering here are selected champions from 2012 from the National Drill Team Championships (OTL: National Dance Team Championships)

Small Varsity Hip Hop - Carlsbad High School - Carlsbad, CA (Song: When U Think About Me; Lead Singer: Camille Posard* (Sr.)
Large Varsity Hip Hop - Floyd Central High School - Floyd Knobs, IN (Song: Take Me There; Lead Singer: ??)
Small Varsity Pom - St. Thomas More High School - Lafayette, LA (Song: Firework/Word Up/Holiday Mashup; Lead Singer: Elizabeth Adley (Sr.)
Large Varsity Pom - Floyd Central High School - Floyd Knobs, IN (Song: This Place is About To Rock; Lead Singer: ??)
Small Varsity Jazz - Rosary High School - Fullerton, CA (Song: Self Control; Lead Singer: ??)
Large Varsity Jazz - Coral Reef Senior High - Coral Gables, FL (Song: Can't We Try; Lead Singer: ??)

*Captain
Note: If you see the Question Marks (??) It Will Be Revealed when we will air the 2012 National Dance Team Championships on ESPN2 on a later date (in the real world)

By The Way National Drill Team Championships airs on ESPN2 and will reach more than 90 million homes this year, in addition live performances of this years National Drill Team Championships aired on a live Audio Stream (at Varsity Radio for free) and a live video stream (on Varsity TV for $9.99, and you can buy the National Drill Team Championships CD's for $50 (Complete Set featuring all the Prelims, Semi-Finals and Finals Routines in 1 Whole Boxset) also for other Drill Team Competitions CD's that cost between $30-$40

And Speaking of ESPN2's Coverage of the Universal Drill Association Competitions, ESPN Classic airs a early-morning first-person view of a NASCAR Race (from the viewpoint of a person driving at a NASCAR Race), accompanied by music from Drill Teams Competitions past and present (including the UDA) called "Ride Awake" (based on Night Walk (and Night Ride and Night Moves) which aired on Global Ontario from 1986-1993), Ride Awake debuted on ESPN from 1991 and is currently airing on ESPN Classic since 2003 and is currently hosted off-screen by Bill Seely (who also hosted Cheerleading and Dance Championship Specials on ESPN and ESPN2) or if Seely isn't in Notable Fill-Ins include Nicole Lauchaire and Shannon Spake (of NASCAR Now)

By The Way: NASCAR is still airing on ESPN and ESPN2 on it's 32nd Year, ESPN showed it's first NASCAR Race from 1981 at North Carolina Speedway.

Current Announcers for NASCAR on ESPN
Lead Lap-By-Lap: Allen Bestwick (ITTL: Bob Jenkins left ESPN after the 2008 Season when the IndyCar Series started a new TV Contract with Versus (Now NBC Sports Network) putting Jenkins to cover the IRL on Vs. (Now NBCSN)
Analysts: Dale Jarrett and Andy Petree
Regular Pit Reporters: Dr. Jerry Punch, Dave Burns, Jamie Little, Vince Welch and Mark Johnson

as for the Television rights for NASCAR, Screvier20 makes the call on that...;)

athleticsfan2kx

February 11th, 2012, 05:14 AM

drill teams? great they can perform at a race.

as for the Television rights for NASCAR, Screvier20 makes the call on that...;)

Great Work Chipperback, I Hope Screvier20 makes the call if ESPN (and maybe ABC) will be okay will get the broadcast rights to air NASCAR so NBC could get the IndyCars and FOX could get some auto race (perhaps the first half of NASCAR, because it will be a long shot)

As For The Drill Teams, They Can Perform at a NASCAR Race but they are recorded from the CD's the NASCAR Fans bring their radios to the race and listen to Drill Team Competition CD's or their favorite radio station during the race.

And BTW, "Ride Awake" is ready for it's 9th Season on ESPN Classic (21st Overall on the ESPN Family of Networks) so here's the soundtrack that we will be looking forward for our first show which air on February 20th (and will be repeated until February 24th) so i'm going to issue the soundtrack for the first show in a later post.

Carl Edwards (#88 Aflac Ford)
Song: When You Think About Me - Carlsbad Lancerettes (Carlsbad, CA) (Camille Posard) (One Vo1ce) [2012 National Drill Team Championships - Small Varsity Hip Hop Winner]
Note: The Song that the Lancerettes perform is a hybrid of One Vo1ce (Kamikaze Remix) and Billy Crawford's Version of When You Think About Me, But The Carlsbad Lancerettes will be involved in this song that gave the Small Varsity Hip Hop Title this year with Camille Posard (our captain) singing the leads.

David Reutimann (#99 Scott's Ford)
Song: You Keep Me Hangin' On - LSU Golden Tiger Girls (Hayley Kropog) (Diana Ross) [2012 UCA/UDA College Nationals - Small Varsity Jazz]
Note: ITTL, LSU Golden Tiger Girls are a merger between the LSU Golden Girls and the LSU Tiger Girls to make 1 whole Vocal Squad and for this 2012 Vocal Performance that Hayley Kropog is sing to You Keep Me Hangin' On on leads, i'll use Kim Wilde's Version from '87 that Kropog can sing.

Roush Engineering: Mark Martin (#6 U.S. Air Force Ford) & Greg Biffle (#16 American Humane Society Ford)
Song: A Little Bit Of Ecstasy - Carlsbad Lancerettes (Lani Yamanaka w/ Camille Posard) (Jocelyn Enriquez) [2011 National Drill Team Championships - Small Varsity Hip Hop Winner]
Notes: This Performance will have a duet with Lani and Camille singing with the rest of the Lancerettes singing background while they dance complete with a hint of California Gurls by Katy Perry and Good Girls Gone Bad by Cobra Starship in which Camille is singing in the mashup, so Mark Martin will provide the In Car Camera (for Lani's singing parts) while Greg Biffle will provide the In Car Camera (for Camille's Singing Parts)

Daughterty-Nance Racing: Kasey Kahne (#18 Interstate Batteries Toyota) and Jeff Burton (#20 Coach K Collection By Nike Toyota)
Song: Dreamboy/Dream Girl - Coral Reef HS Cudettes (Jenny Paez and Gabriel Estrada) (Cynthia and Johnny O) [2011 National Drill Team Championships - Large Varsity Jazz]
Note: That Performance uses Rockell and Collage's Version with Jenny and Gabe's Voices replacing it), and will have Jenny's Interview from the 2011 NDTC which will be aired on Ride Awake and BTW Jenny's Singing Parts along with all of the Female Cudettes singing will be accompanied by a in car camera of Kasey Kahne while Gabriel's Singing Parts will be accompanied by Jeff Burton's in car camera

I'll Have More Information about Ride Awake, on the next post.

athleticsfan2kx

February 12th, 2012, 12:32 AM

More Information about Ride Awake

Ride Awake debuted on ESPN in 1991 that featured in car cameras from a most recent NASCAR Race proving the point-of-view, and was probably most viewed by insomniacs trying to get back to sleep from the viewpoint of a Real NASCAR Driver driving during the race, Only 25 In-Car Cameras will be featured and was repeated

Notable Feature Segments
Regular In Car Cameras - Regular In Car cameras will be focusing on 1 car being set to a audio performance by a High School/College Drill Taem
Speedrush - The Segment will feature a regular in car camera excpet it will be featuring high kick/pom routine performance in the audio and may include crashes by opponent cars
Caution Contemporary - Debuted in 2005, This feature will have an regular in car camera shot during a yellow takes place set to Jazz Performances (Either Lyrical or Contemporary) and it will take place after Speedrush
This Week's Hits of Today - This Segment will feature in car camera being set to the music of today being sung by the top recording stars in the Country
CrossSongOver - In February 2000 they debuted CrossSongOver focusing on 1 song except we mash it up to be sung by 2 drill team squads (1 from the past and 1 from the present) to that particular song being set to 2 Drivers (1 From Each Team) so each driver will have :15 to :20 seconds of in car camera time before the other will do the same and will continue til end of this song.
Going Back - Aired during the Final Hour of the Show, We Will Take A Look Back at a song from a previous year being set to an in car camera from a driver from a previous year.
Ride Awake Request Line - Debuted in 1992 at The End of the First Hour, Viewers who are invited to Send Requests (by e-mail or letter) for songs and provide a story about the song's meaning to them. If a Viewer's Request has appeared on the air he or she will get a $50 Gift Card to the NASCAR.com Superstore and others (usually a Ride Awake T-Shirt and a 3 National Drill Team Championships CD from the most recent competition selected at Random.)
Speedcamp - On Summer 2001, Speedcamp Debuted but it will focusing on a regular in car camera in a practice session during race weekend being set to Cheerleading and Drill Team Camp CD's
Teammates Together - Debuted in 1993, This Feature will include an In Car Camera except it will feature 2 Drivers from a NASCAR Team set to a performance from a drill team which is being sung by a Duet (All Female or Coed) with each driver will allow to have the In Car Camera (with Parts going to the Singer)
Vidterview - Despite ESPN made changes to air the National Drill Team Championships to add Pre-Performance Interviews, Vidterview debuted in 2004 which will feature previous footage from past Pre-Performance the National Drill Team Championships and/or the College Drill Team Championships followed by a Video of their Performance accompanied by a regular in car camera shot.

Retired Segments
Ride Awake Country (Segment from 1993-1996 & 2000-2007) - This Segment will feature an in car camera of a NASCAR Racer being set to Country Music performed by the Top Country Music Stars it lasted until 1996 when TNN (now Spike TV) began it's own Country Music In-Car Show until 2000 when TNN loses to broadcast NASCAR leaving FOX & ESPN/ABC allowing to bring the segment back until 2007 when Ride Awake Country debuted on CMT hosted by Bob Kingsley (currently hosting Bob Kingsley's Country Top 40).

And Speaking of Drill Team Camp CD's, Varsity has issued Drill Team Camp CD's pack with music from Various Drill Team Camps as sung by Drill Team Instructors being recorded at camp and it cost $9, Cheerleading Camps are also good at Various Cheerleading Camps which cost $10 and features songs by the top stars of today.

That's All For Now, So I Can't Wait for the 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Season to start, but i'm to ready to cover the Nationwide Series and others, so i wanna see a list of Nationwide Series Racers competing for the Championship!

*In this timeline the Nationwide Series has it's own All-Star Race on the day before the Sprint Cup Drivers have their own All-Star Race as well, but in the real world the Nationwide Series does NOT have their own all-star race only the Sprint Cup Drivers race.

But How Will Ride Awake Also Cover the Nationwide Series?, Stay Tuned and Find Out!

athleticsfan2kx

February 13th, 2012, 02:50 AM

Now As You Know Ride Awake which airs on ESPN2 at 4-6 AM ET (right before Mike and Mike In The Morning) and on ESPN Classic* from 6-8 AM ET so as you know Ride Awake covers not only the Sprint Cup Series but also the Nationwide Series, so why Ride Awake focuses on the Nationwide Series?

*In This Timeline ESPN Classic does not air any Infomercials, I Repeat No Infomercials on ESPN Classic

A: The Ride Awake Nationwide Series is "Ride Awake Nationwide" which will focus on the In-Car Cameras of the Top Drivers from the NASCAR Nationwide Series being set to Music like your in a passenger car this time it will not only feature music from the National Drill Team Championships which aired on ESPN2 but other Drill Team Performances outside the Universal Drill Association most of these songs were performed by High School Drill Teams in the Western United States (Most of these come from California) and some Eastern US Drill Teams being appeared along with Past Drill Team Performances from Competitions past., so we've learned Alameda High School of Alameda, CA has the Hornettes (An All-Girl Vocal Drill Team captained by Juliet Leonard) will appear this year along with other Drill Teams from the Golden State of California including the following (Captain in Parenthesis)

- Fremont Featherettes (Sunnyvale, CA) (Mallory St. George)
- Homestead Equestriettes (Cupertino, CA) (Sarah Healy)
- Cupertino Golden Spurs (Cupertino, CA) (Kira Feldman)
- And Much More that is too many to name with the voices of Young Girls being heard while your favorite Driver is in the Car!

So Now You Know About the Ride Awake Nationwide Series Segments but i'm going to add more Songs for our first show of the New Season of Ride Awake, So Stay Tuned!

Chipperback

February 13th, 2012, 03:34 AM

great Athletics...except for two canon-based changes.

1. The Dodge entry for the Nationwide Series is the Dodge Javelin not the Challenger...The Challenger is used in Trans Am competition and in IMSA.

2. Chevrolet uses the Camaro in the nationwide series. ITTL the Impala is a Caprice type car/small minivan that is very "hybridable".

3. The "Ride Awake" idea? All for it...Interesting pop culture twist...How popular are drill and cheerleader teams these days? I would be willing to say it was that great film back in 2003 "Bring It On". It was seriously cool, very funny and very umplifting Ambitious band director Harry Dinkle (played by Will Ferrell, surprisingly nominated for Best Actor for this role) had a dream to get Westview (oh) Ohio School, the worst band, drill team and cheerleaders in the entire state, to get them from worst to first in Ohio and then ambitiously sweep the National Combined Spirit Championships...With the help of an ambitious dorkycute flutist (Eliza Dushku , who had to learn the 'dorky' part), a innovative drummer/DJ who considers Roger Troutman "The Greatest Ohioan Ever" (Pharell Williams), and a selfish head cheerleader (Kirsten Dunst) who joins forces with a tough misfit/goth chick at the school who can seriously dance (Julia Stiles), and a newcomer to Westview trying to fit in (Gabrielle Union).

Chipperback

February 13th, 2012, 03:43 AM

Tomorrow morning on Racin' Radio

---Testing over the weekend at Daytona...Who was fast, and who wasn't. ESPN's Mike Massaro will join us to talk about that.

--- And which Manning won the Super Bowl anyway? We'll have one of the quarterback/racing team owners on tomorrow.

All that and more on Racin' Radio Channel 128 on Sirius XM Satellite :)

athleticsfan2kx

February 13th, 2012, 03:49 AM

great Athletics...except for two canon-based changes.

1. The Dodge entry for the Nationwide Series is the Dodge Javelin not the Challenger...The Challenger is used in Trans Am competition and in IMSA.

2. Chevrolet uses the Camaro in the nationwide series. ITTL the Impala is a Caprice type car/small minivan that is very "hybridable".

3. The "Ride Awake" idea? All for it...Interesting pop culture twist...How popular are drill and cheerleader teams these days? I would be willing to say it was that great film back in 2003 "Bring It On". It was seriously cool, very funny and very umplifting Ambitious band director Harry Dinkle (played by Will Ferrell, surprisingly nominated for Best Actor for this role) had a dream to get Westview (oh) Ohio School, the worst band, drill team and cheerleaders in the entire state, to get them from worst to first in Ohio and then ambitiously sweep the National Combined Spirit Championships...With the help of an ambitious dorkycute flutist (Eliza Dushku , who had to learn the 'dorky' part), a innovative drummer/DJ who considers Roger Troutman "The Greatest Ohioan Ever" (Pharell Williams), and a selfish head cheerleader (Kirsten Dunst) who joins forces with a tough misfit/goth chick at the school who can seriously dance (Julia Stiles), and a newcomer to Westview trying to fit in (Gabrielle Union).

Good Job, I Have to Edit the Team Chart for the NASCAR Nationwide Series as for the 2003 Movie Bring It On their competing squad which is also from Ohio who has a Drill Team with a Lead Singer (or Captain) being Portrayed by Monica Castillo (of One Vo1ce) with Anne Marie Ceralvo playing her role as the Co-Captain along with her sister Edna Mae, and Melissa Ruiz Moreno and Aimee Castillo being portrayed as the other members of her drill team.

BTW, Difference The Difference between the In This Canon and the Real Movie.

Westview HS (Ohio) -> Rancho Carne HS (California)

And In The Soundtrack it features One Vo1ce's song "Thru It All" in this competition scene when they performed in the Jazz Category which finished 3rd to Westview (OH) in the movie.

Turn Ahead The Clock Night - MLB started this promotion back in 1998 when the Seattle Mariners battle the Kansas City Royals at the Kingdome for Turn Ahead The Clock with the uniforms from 2027 (The Mariners are celebrating their Golden Anniversary, The Mariners was promotion wsa considered successful and after that all MLB Teams (except the New York Yankees, Chicago Cubs, Toronto Blue Jays, Texas Rangers, Montreal Expos, Houston Astros, Cincinnati Reds and Los Angeles Dodgers) participated in the Promotion in 1999 (Note: The New York Mets renamed into the New York Mercury Mets while hosting the Pittsburgh Pirates on July 27th, 1999), in which this promotion is sponsored by Century 21 Real Estate, In games, stadiums would use futuristic graphics on their scoreboards as a part of the promotion, During in a NL West battle as the Padres take on the Giants, fielding positions were renamed. Shortstop was renamed "intermediate station" and left field was renamed "left sector" but it turned to be a big success today all 32 Teams are taking part in Turn Ahead The Clock Night presented by Varsity Brands, Inc. in which Stadiums played various Drill Team Performances being recorded from various High School Drill Team Performances in the area (for example the San Diego Padres play various songs by the Carlsbad Lancerettes, Miami Marlins play a song by the Coral Reef Cudettes, etc.), The Jumbotron ran news headlines from today and some that are fictional to make a futuristic look, and in the ballpark the Outfield Wall Sponsor Signage is changed to look a futuristic feel, and so on.

Home Run Horns - Kinda Like Goal Horns in the NHL, Because why all 32 MLB Teams have a Home Run Horn when someone scores a home run.

Cheerleaders - Yes, Major League Baseball has Cheerleaders so 16 of the 32 Teams have Cheerleaders in which they sing and dance. (Just like the MLB, NBA, NHL and the MLS.), So Here are the List of Cheerleaders

Darrell Wallace Jr. was signed to a full season with DNR after an excellent efforts in both Trucks and ARCA for Rocafella Revolution Racing in 2009, 2010 and 2011.

Great Work Since i've edited this Team Chart for the Nationwide Series, But well we can see More Nationwide Series popping up later in the year, and much more as we go along (including a new season of Ride Awake!) can't wait for it.

Chipperback

February 13th, 2012, 12:41 PM

"Good morning and welcome to Racin' Radio powered by Auto Train..here on Sirius XM Satellite Radio. I'm John Kernan."

"The Super Bowl last night? WHAT A BALLGAME...LONGEST GAME IN NFL HISTORY...88 minutes...and finally...It was Peyton Manning to Darren Sproles...55-yard catch-and-run for little Darren...and the Indianapolis Colts won 35-29 in double overtime against his little brother Eli and his New Orleans Saints!! We will have Peyton on later in the show...assuming he wakes up it was looong night in Indy."

"Meanwhile...right up front...a weekend of testing has concluded at Daytona in all classes at Daytona...and there was some surprises...The first? Was how balanced the teams are, each day a different manufacturer was in the groove. Dodge dominated the Friday sessions. Ford and Chevy was tops on Saturday...and a huge surprise on Sunday as "Front Row" Joe Nemechek topped 204 miles-per-hour in his Toyota to be the fastest on the final day of testing. And Front Row is with us now on Racin' Radio...welcome to the show Joe."

"Glad to be here, John...and I want to a give congratulations to Pierre Garcon of the Indianapolis Colts...he, and his charity PG for Haiti is a sponsor and a friend of Neme-Tech Racing and last night was an incredible game. I wish it was my Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but I'm very pleased."

"Joe...204???? Not too shabby, but is it too fast?"

"NASCAR's going to work with the car to slow them down..204 is little faster than what we were expecting, but this TRD-SunBank Supra Talladega was running good on Saturday and Sunday, we are looking forward to next week and Bud Pole Qualifying.."

athleticsfan2kx

February 13th, 2012, 04:25 PM

What's Up on Sunday for Drill Team Competitions on TV for the Next 2 Weeks?

2012 UCA/UDA College Cheerleading and Dance Team National Championship (11:00-12:00 PM ET)

Pom Highlight Medleys
University of Cincinnati - Respect of International Love (Kayla Greenstone) [Mashup of Aretha Franklin's Respect and International Love by Pitbull]
Ohio State University - What I Like About You to Turn Me On (Allie Veder) (A Mashup of songs including of What I Like About You by Lillix, Turn Me On by Nicki Minaj, PYT by Michael Jackson, and Hang On Sloopy by The McCoys)

Notables Notes in this Canon
1. The Long Running Daytime Game Shows that debuted before 1990 are still currently airing today are Classic Concentration, The Last Word, Press Your Luck, The Price Is Right, Sale Of The Century, Talkabout and Wheel Of Fortune
2. Click started airing on Syndication from September 6, 1997 to August 1999 hosted by Ryan Seacrest; reruns aired for Several Years on GSN before FOX has planned to Revive Click into the Daytime Lineup but with Randy West announcing (rather than something female) and the Revival debuted in 2004, 2 years after American Idol (another show hosted by Seacrest) debuted, American Idol is still airing on FOX.
3. Both The Last Word and Talkabout started life on Syndication on the Fall of 1989 (Mostly on the FOX O&O's), Later in the Spring of 1990, FOX picked up the Daytime Versions of Both Shows in the Summer after both shows had got the axe. (Other game shows airing on FOX including revivals of Gambit and High Rollers in the early 90's, among others.)
4. Family Guy & American Dad does not only air reruns on FOX during the Daytime but also Late Nights on Cartoon Network as part of [adult swim].

TheMann

February 14th, 2012, 03:51 AM

Round 3 of the Indycar Series....

SunTrust Bank Grand Prix of Miami
Bicentennial Park, Miami, Florida

The streets of Miami played host to round number three of the 2012 Indycar Series, and after the tumultuous race at Phoenix and the classic road race in Alabama, the race was on to see what would be the end result on the streets of Miami, at the tough circuit set up in Bicenntennial Park, around the Pan American World Airways Arena and on the streets around the glass-walled condo towers of Miami's southern downtown. The picturesque location made one think that the circuit was not a ball-buster - and lots of Indycar drivers had learned otherwise since the streets of Miami returned to the Indycar Series in 2004.

The pole for the event went to Helio Castroneves, with teammate Ryan Briscoe lining up alongside, Helio trying to make up after a burned wheel bearing took him out of the event at Barber Park. Tony Stewart qualified third in his best-ever start at Miami, with the howling Ferrari-powered Swift of AJ Allmendinger starting behind him. The Lotuses of Justin Wilson and Casey Mears made up row three, while Paul Tracy and Scott Dixon started seventh and eighth. Tony Kanaan and Jimmy Vasser rounded out the top ten starters on the street circuit, which had been repaved for the 2012 race after a series of complaints about it during the 2011 event. With over 100 yachts lined up along the waterfront areas of the circuit and the event's towering "VIP Seats" ready to go, the crowd of over 80,000, some of which watching from the balconies of condo towers along the circuit, watched as the 32-car field set off into the race.

Miami was much too narrow to allow a standing start, of course, and so they came to the flag behind the pace car. Helio led them up slowly, but his attempt at an advantage backfired on him when both Stewart and Allmendinger decided to jump the gun. The front four qualified came across the line almost four-across, to the shock of the starter, who threw the green anyways, leading to the first protest of the day coming from Roger Penske, who demanded jump start penalties for Stewart and Allmendinger. regardless, the field funneled into wide Turn One, which somehow they all made it through, though some wheel-banging between Dan Wheldon and Dario Franchitti did not go unnoticed by either driver. That continued around the circuit, though the much smoother track meant that the faster cars quite quickly began to pull away from the slower ones. A few of the cars further back that were fast - notably Al Unser, Jacques Villeneuve, David Brabham and Robert Wickens - had to push their way through the field, a task that was not always easy, thanks to the track's speed and the middle section being a tough place to pass due to its twisty run through Bicentennial Park.

(1) Al Unser Jr. took a break from IndyCars to take a one-off drive with Hendrick. Unser Jr. was one of five indycar driver in the race(John and Michael Andretti, Danny Sullivan. and A.J. Foyt).
Joining the Indycars drivers was IMSA regular Geoff Brabham.

(2) Kyle Petty becomes the first driver win both the Daytona 500 and Brickyard 400
in the ame year.

(3) Rusty Wallace used the bump-and-run on Dale Earnhardt coming off turn four. Leading there pit crews into a shoving match after the race.

(4) Dale Earnhardt used fuel mileage to bet Ricky Craven and Steve Park who at the best cars.

(5)Adam Petty comes back from 2 laps down(cut tire) to win.

(6) Dale Earnhardt Jr. becomes only the second driver win both the Daytona 500 and Brickyard 400 in the same year.

(7) Earnhardt Jr. first win back-to-back.

(8) Greg Biffle just runs away with it leading all but 12 laps.

athleticsfan2kx

February 15th, 2012, 05:00 AM

Whose Singing in the Drill Teams from the FUHSD? (Fremont Union High School District) in the South Bay of California

And For High Schools across the Country Drill Teams mostly perform not only in Basketball and Football Games but also in Baseball and Hockey Games as well, so why do Drill Team Girls Sing and Dance at a Hockey Game i don't know what i had because Jay Jianoran (that's me) attended Spectrum Center in the Camden Campus to run a Baseball Team to be supplied by Students from Oakland School of the Arts and Unity High School (in Oakland, CA) so we ran a baseball team back then when we played as the Camden-Unity Cougars led to a state championship in the BSAL the team captain back in 2009 was Tessa Cruz (who is now attending Oberlin College on her Junior Year), and yes Tessa did a bunch of Rockell and Jocelyn Enriquez songs and when i played Strat-O-Matic Baseball since 2008, i always play some Bay Area Drill Teams by hearing Tessa's Voice singing but in 1 Occassion back in the Spring of 2009, Tessa sang a Duet with Kristin Shellhammer (Teacher at Room 8) to "Sweet Honesty" (orig. by M:G a.k.a. Maribel Gonzalez), and BTW i still currently play Strat-O-Matic Baseball today at home (just like in real life), nuff said.

Note: In This Timeline the Camden Campus of Spectrum Center is located next door to the Oakland School of the Arts and a few blocks next to Unity High right here in Oakland, CA and yes when i'm in my days in Spectrum Center, Karen Haynes went to another school somewhere in Oakland.

Speaking of Strat-O-Matic Baseball, A Few NASCAR Drivers play Strat-O-Matic Baseball including Brendan Gaughan and Brad Keselowski (because Penske Racing Souh has fielded a Strat-O-Matic Tournament for Penske Racing South Employees), Adam Petty (usually can play strat with has dad Kyle or Richard), Casey Atwood, Scott Wimmer and a few others.

athleticsfan2kx

February 15th, 2012, 05:22 AM

And Speaking of Tessa Cruz.........

The First Episode of the 21st Season of Ride Awake will kick off February will feature performances from past drill team competitions being set to Nationwide Series In-Car Cameras including the Voice of Tessa Cruz herself!

And So It's True, Tessa Cruz's Rendition of What Do You Remember will be in the 1st episode of the 21st Season of Ride Awake, along with Rylee Blair's Rocket 2 U which will air on the week of February 20th-24th on ESPN2 at 4-6 AM ET and ESPN Classic from 6-8 AM ET.

Added Ride Awake Sounds for this week

Ride Awake Nationwide Series

Travis Pastrana (#99 Boost Mobile Toyota)
Song: Against All Odds - Homestead Equestriettes (Sarah Healy) (Phil Collins) [Bay Area Drill Team Sounds: 2012 Edition]
Note: The Equestriettes version of Against All Odds with lead vocals by Healy herself performed in a Kick Routine in the 2012 USA Competition at Monta Vista High School in Cupertino, CA.

Earnhardt-Childress Racing: Kevin Harvick (#29 AC Delco Chevrolet) & Dale Earnhardt Jr. (#33 Rheem Chevrolet)
Song: In The Air Tonight - University of St. Thomas Singing Squad
(Jessica Larson & Malorie Booth) (Phil Collins) [2010 College Drill Team Championships - Division 1 Jazz Winner]
Note: Malorie ever performed a duet in a drill team competition back in 2006 she performed in a High Kick Routine alongside Elise Pederson for Eastview High School to Tiffany's Gotta Be Love and finished 2nd in the State Competition but we will see Gotta Be Love by Booth & Pederson later in the season.

We will have the Official Playlist on Friday, so we will keep you posted to see more songs that we will add.

athleticsfan2kx

February 16th, 2012, 04:19 PM

Now Here's Some Pageant Production Number Songs from 2011 that all of our contestants sing from the Miss Universe Organization which were televised on NBC.

BTW -The Evening Gown Competition has a live performance by Tinie Tempah

Miss Teen USA (Held July 16th - At Irvine, CA)
Opening Number - S&M (orig. by Rihanna) [Kamie Crawford and Kia Hampton sang solos in the opening with the 51 Contestants singing Backup]
Swimsuit Competition - Only Girl (in the World) (orig. by Rihanna] [Same except both Kamie and Kia along with 51 Girls singing together in swimsuit with Dancing by Kaba Modern]
Halftime Performance - Umbrella (orig. by Rihanna) [Kamie and Kia with the 51 Delegates singing this time in leotards along side Kaba Modern]
Evening Gown Competition - What's My Name (orig. by Rihanna f/ Drake) [Kia Hampton decided to Sing in this performance with the non-finalists singing backup for her]

BTW - All Performances have a Dancing Assist from Kaba Modern (of ABDC Season 1)

Now, I Hope We Want to see the League Alignment for the NBA and NHL in this timeline because we already had NFL and MLB for that, but i hope we will be ready for the Bud Shootout tomorrow.

athleticsfan2kx

February 19th, 2012, 05:03 PM

So What We've Learned on Vocal Drill Teams on TV Today (Posted: After this Competition airs)

Division 1A Pom Squad

Pom Full Performances
University of Minnesota - Da Dip (Rachel Caughey) [Freak Nasty]
University of Memphis - I'm Sexy and I'm Know It/I'm In The House Mashup (Kayla Murphy) [Mashup]

Pom Highlight Medleys
University of Cincinnati - Respect of International Love (Kayla Greenstone) [Mashup of Aretha Franklin's Respect and International Love by Pitbull]
Ohio State University - What I Like About You to Turn Me On (Allie Veder) (A Mashup of songs including of What I Like About You by Lillix, Turn Me On by Nicki Minaj, PYT by Michael Jackson, and Hang On Sloopy by The McCoys)

Note: Ryan Martin did appear on the BCS National Championship Game in a Taped Feature along with LSU's Sadie Landrieu

Next Up Vocal Drill Teams, TV Info in the next post + Ride Awake (Episode 1 of Season 21), is up next.

athleticsfan2kx

February 19th, 2012, 05:16 PM

But First Here's A Question: Who won the Bud Shootout yesterday?

The Answer is: Kasey Kahne in the #18 Interstate Batteries Toyota he beated defending Sprint Cup Champion Carl Edwards (in the #88 Aflac Ford) to win the Budweiser Shootout, Kahne starting from the back of the field in a backup car -- necessitated by a wreck in Friday's Practice Kahne won the season-opening exhibition race for the first time. His winning margin over Edwards was .013 seconds, the closest in Shootout history, in a green-white-checkered finish that took the race seven laps beyond its scheduled distance.

Good afternoon from Daytona...I'm Ken Squier along with David Hobbs, Mike Joy, Kenny Wallace and Wendy Venturini. Welcome to the World's Center of Speed for the 2012 Gatorade Duels at Daytona. Two races to fill the field for the Great American Race!!!

From the beginning, it was a clash of stars of today's NASCAR. Carl Edwards led the opening 5 laps, then Kasey Kahne took the point at lap 6. The Bud Shootout winner worked with teammate Jeff Burton to build and hold the lead through lap 16.

"Teammate" was the operative word of the day, as team drivers linked together in the early going and began to make the deals that would effect the later part of the race. Dale Earnhardt Jr. was the only Childress-Earnhardt car in the mix, but he worked with Brian Vickers and stayed the near front. Earnhardt's biggest rival Adam Petty linked up with his Petty Enterprises teammates and make several rushes to the front and led 4 laps.

And there was the push from front to the back and to the front. Defending Daytona 500 Champion Marcos Ambrose started third, but retreated to the back early in the race to help out temporary teammate and fellow Australian Jamie Whincup. Whincup is a former V8 Supercar Champion, and he's making a debut appearance at Daytona.

Now to be out done is another former Aussie Supercar champ, and Mark Skaife came to race. He was a go-or-go-homer, driving the fourth Rick Hendricks entry. He took off like a bullet from the start of the race going from 18th to 3rd at one point before the pit stops around lap 44,

It was coming out of the pits where experience mattered...and no one had more than Mark Martin, who won the pit shuffle and had the lead by lap 50..

The final ten laps was wild...Three cautions came out. The first at 9 laps to go when Jimmie Johnson lost an engine and sprayed oil on the track. Two other's were due to incidents. With 5 laps to go Markus Palttala, Ricky Carmichael and Mike Bliss got tangled up.

A scary moment with 3 laps left...Vanina Ickx coming off of two go spun by an out of control Jeremy Mayfield...Ickx hit the inside wall hard. She was shaken up, but walked away...But again it showed why the SAFER barrier is standard equipment on the world's racing circuits.

The Ickx accident set up a Green-White-Checkered finish, with Martin leading followed by Petty, Earnhardt Jr., Edwards, Kahne, Burton a great run by Elliot Sadler, Ambrose, Whincup and Skaife, who was having great run and poised to take the second transfer spot. Edwards was strong but vulnerable because his teammates, Jamie McMurray and Matt Kenseth both were caught out of the draft and periods throughout the race. Edwards would have the battle at the front without much help.

On the restart, Martin spun the tires, and Petty, Earnhardt Jr. and Edwards pounced...The duel of the top 3 from last season was on and it was great one..On the white flag lap, again Petty and Earnhardt leaning on each other...Edwards got a push from Ambrose, who had led Whincup and Skaife from the outside. A high-speed Aussie road train had made a move on Sprint Cup's superstars, and a shocked Daytona crowd saw a dive to the line as Ambrose snookered Edwards, Earnhardt and Petty to steal Race #1...and pull two more Australians into the field.

Race #2 would be a battle of Cinderellas, misfits, up-and-comers and proud old men.

Greg Biffle, every favorite animal-lover, started at the front. No matter what he's on the front row for Sunday.

Sterling Marlin would be beside him. Four years after coming back to NASCAR after injuries sustained in 2007 crash that shelved him for a year. He started his own team in 2010, and now the #4 of his rookie days in the late 80s and early 90s is up front.

Two more proud old men where deeper in the field. Bobby Labonte, after years in the wilderness seeks to bring A.J. Foyt often floundering NASCAR team into the front ranks.

Bobby Hamilton Sr. In 2006 he was battling cancer. His doctor said he would lose that fight in a year. By July-2007 he was back at the track spotting for his son Bobby Jr.

In 2009 he was in remission, but 2010 he was given clearance to race again.

In December 2011, he and Andy Petree formed their own team. The Duel at Daytona is his first Sprint Cup race since 2006.

And there is Front Row Joe. Joe Nemechek has a good car, and a good chance.

On the other side youngsters. Kyle Larson, who some say is the greatest pure talent to come out of USAC racing since Jeff Gordon and Tony Stewart. Ryan Truex, who flirted with the Pole Position last Sunday.

Jennifer Jo Cobb, already known as JJC, Her screaming qualifying effort and speed has people thinking maybe she could run up front.

Trevor Bayne was strong in practice the last two days, as was young, aggressive Parker Kligerman. You can also had rookie Austin Dillion to that mix and Justin Allgaier.

And there is a proud return of the AAR banner to NASCAR'S top division. Dan Gurney's old NASCAR outfit is back in action. Gurney restarted NASCAR team 5 years ago, after he reconciled with Ford Motor Company's brass. The team principal is Joie Ray Jr. son of Gurney's longtime mechanic and engineer, former Indy 500 winner Joie Ray. The legendary #34, made famous by Wendell Scott is back at Daytona...and its in some promising hands.

The headliner in the car is former Karting Champion and IndyCar driver George Mack. Mack has been a ready racer who's had to make a lot with a little. Sunday's qualifying effort put him in striking distance of a Daytona 500 start, even if he doesn't win one of the two transfer spots.

The opening laps where tentative...Greg Biffle lead the first 10 laps as the field bided their time. At least at the front.

From the back however, the three Childress-Earnhardt cars of Kevin Harvick, Martin Truex and Austin Dillon joined forces at lap 4...By lap 11, a shocked Greg Biffle could only watch as they soared into the lead.

The rest of the field took the message. Sterling Marlin hitched up to Justin Allgaier, Ryan Newman and Jennifer Jo Cobb...On lap 14 they took their turn to the front..with a pleased Chrysler American Motors Racing boss Mark Donahue smiling with approval.

(to be continued)

In the mid-pack a furious fight to move into the transfer spot battle was developing. Bobby Hamilton Sr. and his son Bobby Jr. had work into position. It had been a tough week from Bobby Jr., a loose bolt in a C-pillar caused his car for fail post-qualifying inspection. NASCAR threw out his time and he had to start from the bad. The younger Hamilton had been dogged as a "cheat" all week. But as he said often in this week, "It is nothing compared to what my daddy has been through."

Bobby Hamilton Sr. carried a lot of fans with him on this ride. Wednesday, he was visiting cancer patients at a hospital in Orlando after practice. It was supposed to be about an hour or so...It turned into more than three hours of tears, and laughter. Hamilton had each person he met in that cancer ward sign a piece of body panel. The signatures now ride on the rear deck of lid of his Chevrolet Chevelle SS. Car 76 doesn't ride alone, now.

But the fun lasted one lap and Ryan Truex drew a bead on Hamilton Sr. and snatched the lead. It was wild and fun racing. Between Lap 36 and the opening of pit window at Lap 44, there was a different leader at the end of each lap.

In the mid-pack, the furious chase continued. Go-or-go homers were at the front of field. Those trying to get there, were cutting deals, looking from drafting help. Bobby Labonte was among those...and he was poised to strike. His A.J. Foyt Chevrolet was running hard. In the pit box, A.J. Foyt was the pit box coaxing the old pro along. Next to him was team investor and Houston Oilers quarterback Tony Romo pleading for #14 to move up.

The front of the field pitted at Lap 45, and this is where Bobby Labonte got a big boost. In the offseason Foyt team boss Larry Foyt had a massive tryout for the pit crew. It was a rough 8-week competition and it was the subject of the coming reality show "The Crew" (Wednesday nights on CMT). The result of the competition was a newbie, but green pit crew that hit their marks on this stop. Labonte was the fastest out. and the leader of the race.

lap 51 was the inevitable Daytona wreck..Brendan Gaughan got a little impatient and leaned into Michael Cherry, who in-turn dug into Kevin Harvick and Denny Hamlin, and collected Cale Gale and Tina Gordon.

Gaughan ended up T-boned by Cale Gale. Cherry pounded the outside wall. Harvick bounced from outside wall into the infield with Hamiln connected to h

RESTART at Lap 54 -- and the big rush came from 14th place. George Mack made a move to the outside at the Green Flag. Erin Crocker, and Ryan Newman went with him. Mack had moved himself from 14th to 6th by turn three.

Lap 55 -- Greg Biffle dropped back to 5th but got a bump on the backstretch from Mack's train..Bobby Labonte was still in the lead and holding that inside

Lap 56 -- FRONT ROW JOE!!!!!! Joe Nemechek got a great run off of turn two and rockets past Labonte in the lead, with Bobby Hamilton Sr. scooting along in second. Biffle had move into third as Labonte was caught out...Austin Dillion got in behind to push Labonte to stop the bleeding of positions.

Joe Nemechek has seen a lot of heartbreak in this sport. He lost his brother in practice for an ARCA race at Daytona in 1996. Until building Neme-Tech in 2004, he had been a career gypsy racer. Hand-to-mouth, week-to-week. A driver considered among the "Last of the True Privateers" now had a place in the setting late afternoon sun.

Three Laps to Go -- And the Chevy boys were threatening, Bobby Labonte was pushing Austin Dillion and rookie Kyle Larson was pushing them both. Larson, a 19-year old phenom who pulled "Tony's Triple" in USAC in 2011 was now near the front. He would be in the 500 in any case, but he was showing he wasn't a in over his head. He was ready and capable.

Two laps to go, and dreams were colliding. Nemechek was sitting up front, Bobby Hamilton Sr. was second. Dillon, the grandson of Richard Childress was riding third with Bobby Labonte four and Kyle Larson fifth.. But sneaking under was Sterling Marlin leading and mix of Dodge and Fords. Jennifer Jo Cobb was in that group. He surprising 195+ qualifying effort would get her in the field. She was getting help from George Mack and Boris Said, who was running to try and get third of his cars into the field.

WHITE FLAG -- And Bobby Hamilton Sr.had a hole to the outside and made his play on Nemechek..Nemechek made a slight move to block..And that opened the door for Bobby Labonte who pulled a move on Dillon and move into the lead. Hamilton got around Nemechek, but the damage was done..Labonte was through with Dillon and now Sterling Marlin...Hamilton's hopes would have died if it wasn't for Casey Atwood, his other team driver linking up with him and Nemechek, who was dropping back.

TURN THREE -- Labonte and Marlin and were battling for the spot and they partied like it was 1995 all over again. Marlin tried to find a way around Labonte, but the Texan protected that bottom and held onto it..Behind them Ryan Truex, Bobby Hamilton Sr, Ryan Newman, Jennifer Jo Cobb and Greg Biffle were in a dogfight for the spot. George Mack was swooping from the outside with Casey Atwood. That second transfer spot was going down to the line.

Bobby Labonte held off Sterling Marlin and took the checkered flag. A.J and Larry Foyt were happy. Bobby Labonte put them in victory lane at Daytona. The first such trip for the Foyt teams since the 1970s.

Behind them a 4-car dive to the line for third.....Bobby Hamilton Sr. just nipped Biffle, Cobb and Truex for the spots. It took about 15 minutes to really look at the photo at the start-finish line, but when it became official, Bobby Hamilton Sr. was overcome with tears of joy. His long journey back into the seat was over. A man once told he might have a year to live was very much alive...and back in the Daytona 500.

In victory lane Bobby Labonte was all smiles. It was his first Daytona qualifying race win, and the highest starting position he's ever had for The Great American Race.

Down the field...Worry, who is in...who is out? That was the big story. Truex was the fastest go-or-go homer in Sunday qualifying. His time would stand...The good thing is no one needed a Champions Provisional this year. so extra spots would go to some go-or-go homers.

Had A Winning Interview attached to this performance
Memphis - Give It To You (Kayla Murphy, Lauren Scarbrough & Katrina Levine) [Note: Levine sang most while Murphy and Scarbrough sang some]
Minnesota - Love Will Lead You Back (Rachel Caughey & Cortney Colich) [Taylor Dayne] [Note: Colich sang the 2nd half of the song, Caughey does the 1st half of this performance] - Jazz

Now For Next Week's Ride Awake, we will see Love Will Lead You Back in a teammates together segment, among other songs on next week's edition, can't wait for it.

As for the Bad News: Rain cancels Sunday's Daytona 500, in which the race will move to Monday and hopefully we won't expect Rain in Daytona for the 500.

athleticsfan2kx

February 27th, 2012, 04:25 PM

Update: The Daytona 500 Will be Going under the lights Tomorrow which will air on FOX and 7PM ET/4PM PT, Because It's a Night Race but another night race will occur on July 7th as the Firecracker 400 powered by Boeing will occur as a night race and will be airing on TNT as part of the NASCAR on TNT Summer Series.

Also: Camille Posard's Could Be Heard on This Week's Ride Awake set to "When U Think About Me" which won the 2012 NDTC in the Small Varsity Hip-Hop Category with Austin Dillon's In-Car Camera which will air at Midnight which will air on ESPN2 and 5:00 AM on ESPN Classic.

Update from Bill Seely (via Twitter): And Looks like we are almost finishing to film this week's Ride Awake with footage from the Daytona 500 which is televised on FOX because we are only 40 laps left, then we could get in time to film the show, on ESPN2 and ESPN Classic so looks like they are trying to film Jeff Burton's in-car with some music being in.

Chipperback

February 28th, 2012, 05:12 AM

34 laps to go RESTART! GREEN! GREEN! GREEN!!

Atwood pitted one lap earlier with a number of other cars...

At the restart...Rookie Ryan Truex leads followed by Kenseth, Johnson, Edwards,, and a huge jump by Joe Nemechek!!!!!!

Petty, Earnhardt, Kahne and Hamlin are the next five...and three Australians have charged into the top 15 with a big start!!!

Chipperback

February 28th, 2012, 05:15 AM

30 LAPS TO GO.....

Kenseth has blasted past the rookie off of two....Edwards and Johnson moved into 2nd and 3rd...Fords 1-2-3....Joe Nemechek moves with them...farther down Ambrose, Skaife and Whincup are hugging the wall..THREE WIDE DOWN THE BACKSTRETCH BEHIND the lead group.

Chipperback

February 28th, 2012, 05:21 AM

23 TO GO.....TROUBLE! TROUBLE!!! NEAR THE FRONT...PETTY AND EARNHARDT BATTLING FOR EIGHTH NUDGE EACH OTHER...INTO THE INFIELD FRONT STRAIGHTAWAY....3, 4 5 CARS INVOLVED...FROM THE LOOKS OF IT Whincup...McMurray and Jeremy Mayfield got caught up...The 7th caution is out...but it looks like everybody will stay in the race...NO IMPACTS BUT ONCE AGAIN IT'S PETTY AND EARNHARDT...THE FEUD CONTINUES!!!!

RESTART WITH 18TH TO GO...Skaife spins the tires!!! GREG BIFFLE is leading a third line!!!!!! KENSETH UP FRONT!!!!

Chipperback

February 28th, 2012, 05:34 AM

12 laps to go.....BIG ONE IN TURN ONE!!!!!!!! Big pile up!!!!!! It's RYAN TRUEX!!! THE ROOKIE IN THE WALL....HE TOOK HIS BROTHER OUT....BOTH TRUEX BOYS IN THE WALL...Keselowski got bit.....Labonte;s caught in it...SO IS Mike Bliss, who was making a move!!! 6 cars its looks like involved!!!!

This is been a wild finish its getting crazy after midnight...Mark Skaife just missed them....he was gaining positions...

4 TO GO!!!! CONTACT.....Whincup and Logano dug in....quite a few more people caught in that!!! and Dale Earnhardt Jr. got dinged!!!! Ricky Stenhouse Jr...Jeremy Mayfield just escaped!!!! Jeff Burton JUST ESCAPED TOO!!!!

GREEN. WHITE. CHECKERED. TO FINISH THE DAYTONA 500!!!

Chipperback

February 28th, 2012, 06:13 AM

[SIZE="3"]On the restart...THREE TO GO!!! Kenseth. Edwards, Nemechek....Kahne pulls out Hamlin goes with him...But check out the outside through one and two....Sterling Marlin!!GOT A PUSH!!!!!!! MARLIN AND JENNIFER JO COBB!!!! DODGES DIVE BOMBING THE TOYOTAS!!! WHERE DID THEY COME FROM!!!

Up the backstretch...Kenseth holding that inside down the middle Kahne and Hamlin being pushed by Jimmie Johnson, But the big run by Marlin and Cobb,,Ambrose went with with them so did Skaife!!!

Through four...2 to go...Edwards lining up Kenseth, but they have to watch the outside...Marlin and Cobb closing...Ambrose staying with them...This could get interesting...Joe Nemechek gets back under Kahne and Hamlin with a killer run into one!!!!!

Kenseth holding that line,..Nemechek working the middle...Bobby Hamilton goes with him...Kahne and Hamlin fading...they close on Kenseth and Edwards...Jimmie Johnson got a run through three...Cobb breaks in to push Hamlin!!!! Its maybe 8 left to win this thing...going through four!!!!

WHITE FLAG Is out...Kenseth leads but three wide behind...into one...The fans are frenzied...Jennifer Jo Cobb.,.GIRL POWER IN ONE!!!!Tries for a hangs through one!!!Kenseth, Edwards through one...Whoa!!! another attack out...BOBBY HAMILTON JR.down the middle up the straight. up the straight...ARE YOU KIDDING??? Hamilton brings Marlin along with Nemechek!!!. Ambrose pushing Cobb with MARK SKAIFE??? What is going on out here?...Edwards pulls out tries to get the push from Hamilton!! Three wide through three into four...THIS IS CRAZY!!!!!! Through the triooval......Kenseth, Edwards..COBB!!!!!to the line....It's going to be...To be...........WE DON'T KNOW!!!!! WE REALLY DON'T KNOW....!!!!!!

The scoring pylon has.....92!!!! AT THE TOP!!!!!!!!!!! This would be unreal!!!!!! Jennifer Jo Cobb was at 10th and the restart and maybe just maybe end..1st??????? Race Control is checking the photos!!!

Race Control to 92 Pit......Come in....Bootie....buddy.....Tell your driver to get herself to victory lane...You win.......YEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!!! Jennifer......You are the WOMAN!!!! WE DID IT!!!!!!!!!....Thanks, Bootie!!!!!! for everything...You're not bad for a guy and all..

Mike Joy: "Incredible 3-car dive to the line at Daytona...first since 1959....and we get history...the first full night race in Daytona 500 history...and its ends with the first female winner of the race in history...Jennifer Jo Cobb has won the 54th running of the Daytona 500...

Chipperback

February 28th, 2012, 06:26 AM

"We have Bootie Barker in the pits...Winning crew chief...Bootie, what did you tell her on that last restart?

"Two words, Dick.....FLOOR IT! She had great restarts all night, and she's no afraid to drive the car and go fast...and that is what I love about her. We were hoping for a good showing, but when we got the good restart and we were able to put the car anywhere..we were thinking that we were a top 10 car..Jennifer put in the extra moxie that made us a top 1 car tonight..."

Bootie, what does this win mean for you. You've been a crew chief for more than a decade...this is your biggest career win...

(breaking down to tears) "I'm just proud...of this team..and my driver....I've always wanted a win in one of the biggest races..and I wasn't expecting.....I didn't see this coming....tonight....But I'm grateful.....This is the best day I've had in racing in my life."

With the NASCAR Sprint Cup invading in Las Vegas practice is over, but in according one of our staffers who does Ride Awake in a Twitter: Well i cannot tell what Carl Edwards is doing fine in practice but i hope he will do well in Qualifying and yes can we play some Sarah Gerdes singing a deadmau5 song.

Another NASCAR Fan on Twitter Said: Holy Cow Carl Edwards really well in Practice, Great Work!

And One More NASCAR Fan on Twitter Said: Hmmm, I Can't Believe what Carl Edwards is happy in Vegas for Practice i hope he will win 2nd pole of 2012 *Crosses Fingers*

And That's Tweets In Vegas, Chipperback will cover NASCAR in Vegas tomorrow and sunday, can't wait for it.

The first race of the WSC at the rebuilt, and stunningly beautiful, Potreiro de los Funes Circuit was a wild one from the word go, with event running into the evening and turning out to be a shootout between the Peugeot Sport Pescarolo Team and the Ford Panoz teams, the latter fresh off of a big win at the 24 Hours of Daytona. After 1000 kilometers and five hours and fourty-eight minutes of racing, the Peugeot of Pedro Lamy, Jacques Villeneuve and Alysha Valcartier coming out ahead of the Panoz of Colin Braun, Danny Sullivan, Josef Newgarden and Alon Day by just over twenty-two seconds at the end of the event, with the Chrysler of Donohue / Fittipaldi / Rossi landing in third, beating the BMW of Dirk Muller / Augusto Farfus Jr / Joey Hand by just over a minute, a lap down on the lead two. The P-GT class was a second successive win for the Corvette team, but this time the Al Unser Jr / Ron Fellows / Trevor Bayne car beat their teammates to the P-GT win. The P2 class was won by the AF-Pecom Corse Lola-Judd/BMW of Argentinians Matias Russo, Luis Perez Companc and Norberto Fontana, beating the Alex Job Racing Porsche RSV Spyder of Rene Rast, Alvin Joiner and Marc Hoover by a lap. The GT1 win went to the Team Lexus entry of Akira Iida, Michael Cooper, Christian Ledesma and Yasuyoshi Yamamoto, leading the Robertson Saleen S7-R of Boris Said, David Murry and Ben Keating across the line by about half a lap, with the Nissan GT-R of Ayrton Senna, Mauricio Gugelmin and Raul Boesel, their run slowed by handling issues and a problem with the turbocharger wastegate, finished third in class and three laps back. Paul Gentilozzi put up a spirited drive to take Jaguar's first GT2 victory, leading home the two Prototype Technology Group BMW M3s, them harried by the privately-entered Porsche 997 GT3-RSR of Mariano Werner, Fabian Yannantuoni and Emiliano Spataro.

12 Hours of Sebring

A big win for Chrysler, after the problems with overheating at Daytona were handled by the discovery that the SuperPatriot Abarth is a tougher car than thought, Chrysler stormed to victory, with the car driven by Robby Gordon, Scott Pruett and Oswaldo Negri getting the win, with the Panoz-Ford of Bryan Herta, Kristen Miller, Ali Naimi and Malcolm Strachan coming out with second place after Miller hustled through the last 90 minutes to catch, and then eventually pass, the second Chrysler of David Donohue, Christian Fittipaldi and Dan Clarke. Fourth was the P-GT winning Corvette, this time the car of Ron Fellows, Al Unser Jr. and Trevor Bayne beating out teammates Jan Magnussen, John Heinricy and Oliver Gavin. Only the battle in GT1 was anything like a battle at the end, with the West Yokohama Lamborghini of Nicky Pastorelli, Michael Mallinen and Jeff Kowalik, the Aston Martin Racing One-77 Gran Turismo of Stefan Mucke, Darren Turner and Jethro Bovingdon and the Sumo Power Nissan GT-R of Enrique Bernoldi, Warren Hughes and Ricardo Zonta. The class victory when to Bernoldi, Hughes and Zonta after a dramatic chase down in the dying moments culminating in a wild last-lap pass by Formula One veteran Zonta on British racer and journalist Jethro Bovingdon in the Aston Martin. The GT2 category was won by Stasis Engineering's Audi R8, showing tons of pace after a disappointing run in previous rounds.

OOC: I'll add to this later. :)

athleticsfan2kx

March 26th, 2012, 12:58 AM

Also on Ride Awake coming next week: a Vidterview featuring Carlsbad Lancerette Camille Posard will air on ESPN2 which features same interview of Camille herself seen in the 2012 National Drill Team Championships in the Hip-Hop Category which will air later at 4-6AM ET right before ESPN Radio's Simulcast of Mike and Mike in the Morning Show, so accompaning this performance of the 2012 Small Varsity Hip Hop Routine from Carlsbad High with Camille Singing on Stage, is Carl Edwards in the #88 Aflac Ford.

In Addition another Vidterview featuring Rosary Vocal Squad Captain Jordan Felix will air as well accompanied Rosary Vocal Squad performance in the Small Varsity Jazz Category is Jimmie Johnson in the #48 Lowe's Chevrolet which will air at the same time.

Both of these In-Car cameras which were recorded live at Infineon Raceway during the Beringer Wine Country 300 which aired on FOX this sunday, and is won by Jamie McMurray.

To See Rosary High School's Performance from the 2012 National Drill Team Championships, Click Here (Complete with Voiceover by Bill Seely & Jenny Eustice) and yes we could see the Voiceover Free version on Ride Awake later this week. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_PQsA2xoUI&list=UUTYSaRwWezA9PFGFRxMPBWg&index=1&feature=plcp)

Chipperback

March 26th, 2012, 10:27 AM

Good Morning..John Kernan here! From our studios on International Speedway Boulevard in Daytona Beach, Florida, this is Sirius-XM Racin' Radio, sponsored by Auto Train.....Why drive a car when you have one...Travel with Auto Train.

The big story on this Monday Morning March 26th.

First, NASCAR, the Sprint Cup season started with a BANG! As Jennifer Jo Cobb shocked the world in winning the Daytona 500...But since Daytona, the season has solidly gone chalk as they say in the NCAA tournament...
Las Vegas winner? Carl Edwards: Nashville Winner? Carl Edwards Bristol Winner? Matt Kenseth, but Carl Edwards ran 2nd...

At Infeneon Raceway yesterday..the third player of Yates-Allison-Kulwicki got into victory lane as Jamie McMurray rallied with a pass on rookie Kyle Larson with 2 laps to go with. Larson ended up 2nd, Elliott Sadler had a great run to third. Mark Martin was fourth, Carl Edwards came home 5th, but stretched his already strong lead in the Sprint Cup standings.

IndyCar racing...An awesome finish at Surfer's Paradise, we will get a report from Paul Page in Australia...

Sportscars -- Today Robby Gordon wil be on the show! Gordon pulled off a big win at Sebring for the new Chrysler American Motors LeMans racer and looks for 2-in-a-row at Barber, Alabama.

Formula 1 -- Still a lot of buzz about the great podium effort for the Springbok Team in South Africa, we will have Jody and Tomas Scheketer on the show this morning. Round 2 for F1 comes up this weekend in Malaysia.

Also on the show today -- Our good friend Willy T. Ribbs -- and what he week he's had.
On Monday Ribbs and his wife Lyn St. James-Ribbs announced that they would be minority partners in Sarah Fisher's race team, and the new sponsorship would allow Fisher to run an extra car or two for the Indy 500

On Tuesday, Sarah Fisher annouced who the two extra cars would be...Willy T. Ribbs and Lyn St. James will attempt to be the first husband and wife to qualify for the Indianapolis 500....

Thursday night -- Ribbs was at Brownsburg, Indiana, to watch his daughters....Serena and Janet, also known as the backcourt for the Speedway High School defeated Brownsburg 59-51, to make it to the IHSAA Girls Final Four this weekend at Hinkle Fieldhouse/Butler University...

But with NASCAR Action from Auto Club Speedway coming later in the weekend, here's what Jordan said*.

Jordan: Well for Ride Awake next week i want to have all 3 Jocelyn Enriquez cover songs that Rosary High School did appeared in the Small Varsity Pom category in the National Drill Team Championships, so Alexandra Yonkovich will have "Do You Miss Me" from last year, Mandy Crandall will have "No Way No How", and i can take "When I Get Close To You", maybe i can write a letter to the Director of Ride Awake on ESPN2 and ESPN Classic, so i hope we can have these songs being played this week.

*Referring to Jordan Felix of Rosary High School's Pom Squad

So if you can count 3 Jocelyn Enriquez Cover Songs to appear on the Show, you can add "I've Been Thinking About You" from their Small Varsity routine from Carlsbad High which is sung by Team Captain, Rylee Blair which will air on Ride Awake you get 4 Jocelyn Enriquez songs, get it 4?

But what about Bill Seely host of Ride Awake and Varsity Spirit Coverage on ESPN had to say about electronic dance music on Ride Awake This week when we are recording at California Speedway later this week.

Bill Seely: Well I Ever Learned on the Majority of Electronic Dance Music appearing on Ride Awake this week as you know some have songs by Rockell, some by Deadmau5, some by ATB, some by Planet Soul, etc. but i'm still getting ready for drinks before filming but i want a Coke Zero with that and talk to Tim Richmond and Allen Bestwick for the Nationwide Series because we are still here and tomorrow bring me some coffee so we could film during the Morning Test Session soon with Carl Edwards and Dale Earnhardt Jr. as we prepare for the Mattel Intellivision HD 500.

And Speaking of Seely you could see him airing the National Drill Team Championships on the following times

And don't forget to catch Seely hosting Ride Awake 4-6AM ET/1-3 AM PT on ESPN2 before Mike & Mike in the Morning (which will be simulcasted on ESPN Radio), and ESPN Classic from 6-7AM ET/3-4 AM PT which is titled Ride Awake Plus complete with the first 2 hours of Ride Awake being simulcasted from ESPN2.

athleticsfan2kx

March 27th, 2012, 05:23 AM

And Now Here's You've Learned when the Sprint Cup Series met together with the K&N Pro West Series Racers at Infineon Raceway

And BTW, The Sprint Cup/Nationwide-K&N Pro West Series Combined Races continue next week at California Speedway on March 31-April 1, 2012.

Screvier20

April 24th, 2012, 02:37 PM

NASCAR and INDYCAR update

At California Speedway two drivers had the field covered all day Adam Petty and Matt Kenseth but the race came down to fuel mileage with Aric Almirola taking a surprise win. Texas Motor Speedway would see what was best finish of the season so far with Matt Kenseth edging out Greg Biffle by only 0.005 second. Kansas Speedway saw a great 5 lap battle for the win between Carl Edwards and Dale Earnhardt Jr. with Jr. taking his first win of the season.

Tony Stewart will drive for Junior Johnson Racing Enterprises
A.J. Foyt IV will drive for A.J. Foyt Team Coyote
Casey Mears will drive for Petree-Hamilton Motorsports
Steven Wallace will drive for SABCO-Sabates South Florida Motorsports
Adam Petty will drive for an join Petty-Andretti-Green Autosport team

The 2012 Indianapolis 500 will Adam Petty's 4th finishing 19th, 22th, and 13th in the first three(09, 10, and 11). The 2012 will be Tony Stewart's 7th run of the double (99,00,01,03,09, and 10). A.J Foyt IV will make his second attempt at the Double first was in 2010 finishing 32nd in the 600. Both Casey Mears and Steven Wallace will make their attempt at the double.

Chipperback

April 29th, 2012, 01:46 PM

"Welcome back to BBC America BreakfastTime Sunday. I'm Oona Dafoe."

Election Fever leads the news. In the USA Democratic hopefuls look ahead to "Industrial Tuesday" A slate of primaries in Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Michigan, Ohio, AND Pennsylvania. Democratic frontrunners courted key party mayors over the weekend. In Chicago, New York Senator Hillary Clinton met with Chicago Mayor Barack Obama. In Detroit, California Senator Barbara Boxer had a joint appearance with Detroit Mayor John Salley. While the leading challenger on the left, Minnesota Senator Paul Wellstone toured Ohio with Cincinnati Mayor Mark Mallory.

Across the Atlantic, the Battlebuses are warming up. Prime Minister Michael Portillo is expected tp set a date for the General Election by Monday and dissolve Parliament. The current polls shows the Tories in slight lead. The leader of the Labour opposition, Diane Abbott will appear on Paxman Tonight to discuss Labour's strategy toward the coming vote.

And in France, Wednesday will be decision day. Current President Nicolas Sarkozy is in the fight of his political life against Socialist Party Candidate Segolene Royal. Many say the key to the ballot could be who can garner the supporters of Action Francaise candidate Bernard Tapie who ran a close third in the first round balloting. Both candidate met with Tapie last week, but the noted industrialist did not great either an endorsement.

In Sport this past week. Leeds United is partying like its the 1970s as they earned their way to the UEFA Champions League Final with a 4-2 victory over AC Milan to win the aggregate. Jermaine Dafoe was the most colorful Peacock again with 2 goals...and yes, he's my husband :) They will have tough odds in the final as they'll met "The Billion Dollar Team" Real Madrid in the final. Madrid swept both legs on Manchester United led by the brilliant play of Lionel Messi, Wayne Rooney and Clint Dempsey.

Today's big event is coming up BBC 1 and BBC America. Formula 1 takes the track in Sunny Long Beach, California, It is the United States Grand Prix West. On the seaside this morning we have our BBC Grand Prix team...Murray Walker, Martin Brundle, John Bisagnano and Jeff Gordon...take it away boys."

(cue "The Chain")

The battle for the World Championship comes to America for the first of three Grand Prix here in the USA. It is a perfect day for a race in Long Beach..and it was a wide open qualifying session that lead to yet another surprise and our second "Prequalify To Pole" winner of the season. Jeff Gordon has more on that.."

"Young Marco Andretti was fast in prequalifying in his Zanardi and then he tore through Saturday knockout qualifying to win his first F1 pole. He will try to do something his grandfather, and his father have done.

Mario Andretti won here at Long Beach in 1977 and 1978. and his dad Michael won here in 1992. Marco Andretti has been fast all weekend and could add his name to the Andretti legend at Long Beach."

"You can also add his teamowner Alex Zanardi who won here twice as well."

Upfront the championship battle Martin Brundle. Three races. Three different winners from three different teams, and the two men at the top of the championship have yet to win a race."

"Murray, it shows how competitive F1 is and how consistency matters. Lewis Hamilton hasn't won a race but he's been on the podium twice in three races and he's hasn't had the rough Sunday others have had, but World Champions Sebastian Vettel is 2 points ahead because Vettel has been strong with bonus points. He got the 5-point pole bonus in Malaysia and earned the fastest lap single-point bonus at Kylami.

John Bisagnano, this season has been wild so far. What has surprised you.

"The diversity Murray, across the teams. Go back to South Africa, how Springbok and Tomas Scheketer raced to the pole position and could have won the race. A late pit stop hurt them but they still earned a podium finish. Nico Rosberg's bonzai charge past Vettel to win Malaysia. Juan Pablo Montoya breaking a two-year losing streak with a fine drive in Brazil. And down the order Nelson Piquet Jr. has been smart and solid and could challenge here today. His dad's team putting together two straight quality weekends. Bruno Senna's snappy start. Will Power starting strong. Jacqueline Cevert and Danica Patrick have worked into the mix, and the grand old man of Formula 1 Rubens Barrichello, who just missed a podium in Brazil. This Formula 1 season is shaping up to be everything that Damon Hill hoped it would be.

Lets take a look at the starting grid for today's Mattel Intellivision HD U.S. Grand Prix West at Long Beach.

"Will see you all here for BBC Grand Prix-Long Beach later on BBC 1 AND BBC America..Join Us!"

athleticsfan2kx

May 5th, 2012, 12:13 AM

Also Earlier This Week: In Case You Missed Wednesday's Airing of the Hip-Hop/Pom Episode of the National Drill Team Championships on ESPNU let's see what you had heard because they had also interviewed

Next Week on Ride Awake: All 4 Pom Squads that had a Pre-Dance Interview and 2 Small Varsity Hip-Hop Routines that had a Pre-Dance Interview will be in.

Chipperback

May 5th, 2012, 12:37 PM

Mattel Intellivision HD United States Grand Prix West at Long Beach
LEWIS PUTTIN' IN WORK
Hamilton retakes championship lead with inspired drive.

Long Beach, California -- All season, he had been consistent in races. A set of podium finishes making up for qualifying sessions that weren't up to speed of some the other top teams. Lewis Hamilton has spent much of the season with a Stewart/Tyrrell-Ford that was a much better race car than qualifying car.

At Long Beach, having the best race car really matter as Hamilton drove to the top of the podium in in a 75-lap symphony that saw the former world champ channel his inner John Watson.

From the start, hard chargers took command. Will Power jumped young Marco Andretti at the start and took the early lead. Until Nico Rosberg picked his way from 4th to 1st by lap 7.

The race changed drastically in the pits. The Jordan's made their presence known as Jenson Button and Sebastian Vettel used solid pit stops to ascend to their customary 1-2 spots by lap 18.

What they didn't count out was the man on third.

Hamilton started the race on a hard tyre compound. He was running 5th early on, but the car took to the tyres, and the track by lap 10, and Hamilton closed. It was part of a risky 3-stop strategy designed to take advantage of having nimble race-ready car...and Hamilton took advantage through the second pit-window. Between laps 20-39, Hamilton set four fastest laps and closed the advantage of the Jordans. He got past Vettel at Lap 35, and raced past Button for the lead at Lap 39.. On Lap 41...He topped off fuel again...But the tyre stayed on the car. The Goodyear hards hanging tough.

Down the field, suprising performances bubbled to the top. Kyle Busch was having one of his most aggressive drives, battling the equally aggressive Nico Rosberg for fifth. Marco Andretti was trying to battle back from an early spin to run 7th. Katherine Legge was having her best driv since her win in 2009 running 8th and climbing..

At Lap 56, Ryan Hunter-Reay found his pace, and set fastest lap to climb into 10th.

Up front, Hamilton continued to surge to their final pit lap..Again, the S/T boys calculated well. They ended the race on their soft-sticky red Goodyears..and Lewis kept his advantage, which had grown to 37 second by the Lap 63 stop. Hamilton from there snatched fastest lap and held it to a joyous checkered flag.

Behind him, a scrambled for the podium. Will Power, climbed back up to second..and third was a wild 4-car duel that was won by Katherine Legge who had raced her hart to maneuver past Button and Rosberg to take a spot at 3rd.

Lani Yamanaka's 2011 Small Varsity Jazz Performance which is recorded from Orlando in last year's National Drill Team Championship will appear on Next Week's Ride Awake with Greg Biffle in the In-Car Camera

Plus for Juli her song no Scrubs she will make her 4th Appearance to This Show Next Week accompanied by In-Car Camera shots of Ryan Truex

And Kaci Yamanaka will have 2006 Small Varsity Jazz performance with the Lancerettes to a SWV Cover called Weak to be aired next week (Weak and Week are Homophones) accompanied by In-Car Camera shots of Kevin Harvick.

But Would Camille Posard appear in this week's Ride Awake Vidterview?
Answer: Yes, Driver will be Revealed Tomorrow.

athleticsfan2kx

May 27th, 2012, 05:28 PM

And Why is WRTV airing Ride Awake Live at Indianapolis?

It's True WRTV decided to air Ride Awake Live at Indianapolis during the 500 right after Trackside 6: Breakfast at the Brickyard which will take a look at a first person view of drivers currently racing in Sunday's Indianapolis 500 and is filmed live set to Background Music and is aired until 6:00 PM with Bonus Coverage from Charlotte, NC for the Auto Train World 600, followed by RTV 6 News at 6 and a Tape-Delayed Indianapolis 500 at 7 then RTV 6 News at 11 at 11:30 PM

As For ESPN they will air Ride Awake Tape-Delayed after WRTV airs Ride Awake Live from Indianapolis every weeknight on ESPN2 and ESPN Classic.

And Yes The Opening Number of the 2012 National Drill Team Championships is played on the Green Flag on Ride Awake Live accompanied by the in-car Camera of Ryan Briscoe who is driving the #6 for Team Penske.

athleticsfan2kx

June 2nd, 2012, 03:03 PM

Breaking News: The 2012 Miss Teen USA Pageant will held this summer in San Bernardino, CA on July 28, 2012 this is the first time after 23 years that the Miss Teen USA Pageant has returned to San Bernardino the last time it hosted a Miss Teen USA Pageant happened to be from 1988 & 1989 both won by Mindy Duncan and Brandi Sherwood, The Pageant will televised on TeenNick and will be also simulcasted on MTV Jams, BET Hip-Hop & Centric so we can increase our Viewers for Hip-Hop Fans because our plans for the Opening Number for the 51 Teenagers along with Danielle Doty who will crown her successor on the night of the pageant that they will song wil probably be a hip-hop song but we've the pageant has just signed a 5 Year Agreement with District 78 a Los Angeles based music production company best known for our work on TV shows like America’s Best Dance Crew and So You Think You Can Dance now we are recording for these 52 Ladies (including the Danielle Doty) at District 78 later in July.

Also: The 2012 Miss USA Pageant will air tomorrow on NBC from Las Vegas, NV (Note: The competition will play out in real-life except in this universe we could have the opening number song to be performed by the girls themselves), to see the outfits for the Opening Number, click here. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sSgXGMxzcic)

And Why Did the 51 Girls singing something in the production so here's what we did
Opening Number: "Laserlight" (originally by Jessie J f/ David Guetta)
Post-Swimsuit Production Number: "Call Me Maybe" (originally by Carly Rae Jepsen)
Evening Gown Production Number: "Lights" (originally by Ellie Goulding)
Teen First Look Production Number (featuring the Miss Teen USA 2012 Delegates): "Turn Up The Radio" & "Give Me All Your Lovin' (both are originally by Madonna) with a cameo appearance by the UNLV Marching Band

As for the Outfits in the Production Numbers
Opening Number: Neon-Colored Leotards of their own Choosing
Teen First Look Production Number: For The Miss USA Contestants they wore White Cheerleading Uniforms w/ Blue Skirt, While The Miss Teen USA Contestants wore white Cheerleading Uniforms w/ Red Skirts and all of them wear shoes
(Link to see the Delegates of Miss Teen USA 2012: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miss_Teen_USA_2012)

As for the Rest in which they are live performances
Swimsuit Competition: "#1Nite (One Night) and "You Make Me Feel..." by Cobra Starship
Top 5 Final Look: "America's Most Wanted" by Akon

Other Personnel
Hosts for this pageant: Al Michaels, Dick Enberg, Jeannie Mai & Kelly Osbourne
Networks: NBC & XBOX Live
Preliminary Judges: Michael Agbabian, Cindy Barshop (The Real Housewives series), Stefan Campbell, Renee Simon, Alison Taub, Kim Wagner & Randall Winston (TV Producer & Director who worked on Spin City (ABC) & Scrubs (NBC)
Final Judges: Cat Cora (co-host of Around The World in 80 Plates on Bravo), Ali Fedotowsky (Contestant on The Bachelor & Bachelorette), Arsenio Hall (Winner of Celebrity Apprentice 5 & Host of his Syndicated Talk Show from 1989-1994), Marilu Henner (Played Elaine O'Connor Nardo on Taxi on ABC), Joe Jonas (of the Jonas Brothers), Rob Kardashian (Runner Up on Season 13 of Dancing with the Stars), George Kotsiopoulos (Co-Host of Fashion Police), Dayana Mendoza (Miss Universe 2008)
Ratings: The Pageant which aired tonight gave a 6.16 Million Viewers giving the NBC the ratings win for Sunday Night thanks to their Miss Teen USA First Look Production Number which features 2 Madonna Cover Songs beating out ABC, FOX & CBS coincidentally NBC did hit the ratings Madonna on Super Bowl Sunday when they aired Super Bowl XLVI with over 111 Million Viewers as the Indianapolis Colts (led by Peyton Manning) beat the New Orleans Saints (led by Eli Manning) 35-29 in Double Overtime to capture the Lombardi Trophy at Worldwide Pants Field at Lucas Oil Hoosierdome on February 12, 2012.

Notes: For the first time, a question was solicited from Twitter for the final question asked of one of the five finalists. That question - "Should transgenders be allowed to compete?" - was answered by the winner, Culpo.

That Means as i continue to Cover the Drill Team Sounds, Let's See a First Look for both Alameda High Schools

Encinal Flight Crew
Lead Captain: Noella Leuterio
Songs That She Will Probably Sing: "Knock On Wood" (orig. by Amii Stewart), "You Da One" (orig. by Rihanna), "3" (orig. by Britney Spears)
Notes: The Flight Crew could be considered to finish in the top 10 in the Bay Area Regionals just like they did for 3 straight years in a row, but could they go for #4 in the 2012-2013 season?

Alameda Hornettes
Lead Captain: Holly Staten
Songs That She Will Probably Sing: "I Would Die 4 U" (orig. by Prince), "Far From Over" (orig. by Frank Stallone)
Notes: Holly Staten who also performs with her school's choir and performs in Musical Theater could try her shot along with Co-Captains Grace Guenon, Juliet Leonard and others to finish in the top 5 and probably make it to the Nationals

And in Case You Missed Ride Awake this week: The Hornettes did appeared this week with Staten singing to Holding out for a Hero (Which happened to be a Kick Routine in the 2012 Bay Area Drill Team Regionals) accompanied by Adam Petty's In-Car Camera at Daytona which is filmed on July 7th.

July 27, 2012: The Summer Olympics kicked off in London and among the stuff we had in the Opening Ceremonies included the Opening Section of the Ceremony encapsulated British economic and social development from rural economy to Industrial Revolution to the 1960s, The Queen's Introduction, a performance celebrating the National Health Service, and Sir Simon Rattle's performance to honor the 30th anniversary of Vangelis Chariots of Fire with Rowan Atkinsson performing comically playing a repeated single note on synthesiser. He then lapsed into a dream sequence in which he joined the runners from the film of the same name (about the 1924 Summer Olympics), beating them in their iconic run along West Sands at St. Andrews by riding in a car and tripping the front runner., after that The performance was followed by a sequence to honor British Pop Culture in a song and dance routine centered around a Boy and a Girl portrayed by (Enrique Costa & Jasmine Breinburg) flirting by mobile phone, performed to an assortment of British popular songs arranged chronologically sung by Breinburg & Costa, ending with a live performance of "Bonkers" by Dizzee Rascal, but during the performance saluting British Pop Culture a group of members of the 101st Field Artillery Regiment from Brockton, MA fired cannons in the shores of East Providence, RI (in which Meredith Vieira who did the commentary on the Opening Ceremony in the 2012 Summer Olympics which aired on NBC) accompanying Breinburg's Vocals while Members of the 56th Troop Command in Providence, RI accompaning Costa's Vocals to honor 4 Decades of British Music following the performance but during the 80's start with "Blue Monday", "Relax", "How Do You Want Me", and "Sweet Dreams" to have Jasmin's Vocals heard as the 101st Field Artillery Regiment fired Cannons all over the Shores of Rhode Island.

Following the Opening Ceremonies after David Beckham along with 7 young athletes lighted the torch, news reports we're occured on WJAR-TV (Meredith Vieira's Alma Mater) on the Cannon Fire Performance from Katie Davis, the same goes for WHDH-TV (Matt Lauer's Alma Mater because he hosted Talk of The Town), and on the London Telegraph when Jasmine Breinberg talk about by performing in Danny Boyle's Opening Ceremony, with that success a special CD saluting the Sounds of the 2012 Summer Olympics Opening Ceremony will be released including the Vocals of Jasmine Breinberg in the British Pop Culture Salute will be released on August 1st, 2012 (click here for the interview from the Telegraph) (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9oEnl1KqlBY).

July 28, 2012: The 2012 Miss Teen USA Pageant is televised from Irvine, CA at Bren Events Center, The 51 Miss Teen USA Contestants sang "Turn Up The Radio" & "Give Me All Your Lovin" by Madonna which is the opening number of the Pageant but in the end Logan West representing Connecticut won the Crown.

July 29, 2012: The Worldwide Pants Brickyard 400 took place in Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Jimmie Johnson won his 3rd Sprint Cup Event giving his 4th Brickyard 400 Victory in His Career

This Week in the NASCAR: With the Rent Ruan Hawkeye 400 for the Sprint Cup and the US Cellular 250 taking place at Iowa Speedway this week, EA Sports is ready to release NASCAR Thunder 2013 featuring ESPN will be releasing on Sunday's Running of the Rent Ruan Hawkeye 400 in Newton, IA for the XBOX 360, Playstation 3 & Intellivision HD
Here's The List of New Features that we will see
- Split Screen Mode will now have 41 AI Cars
- All Sponsors are Signed and In The Game (Alcoholic Sponsors are not in the Game due to Requirements)
- Track Evolution throughout a race (depends on length)
- Pit Stop Adjustments expanded
- AI Programmed by In-Race Telemetry directed from the real life counterparts
- In public races ONLY, when you sit still or drive backwards your car is ghosted
- More Advanced Career Mode
- Paint Booth now with a improved interface/easier to use also the paint booth will have customs can have up to 1,200 layers and feature over a thousand sponsors
And Now The Soundtrack
NASCAR Thunder 2013 will feature a Soundtrack to make it a Ride Awake Feel (in which Ride Awake airs on ESPN2 & ESPN Classic) it will featuring a number of Vocal Drill Team Performances as seen on that Show + Current Hits as well as some old favorites to celebrate the 15th anniversary of EA Sports NASCAR Video Game Franchise

And Much More That We Will Have, More info on NASCAR Thunder 2013 in the next post.

athleticsfan2kx

August 8th, 2012, 05:08 AM

Well There will be More Info about NASCAR Thunder 2013 for EA Sports later but first......

SOME RIDE AWAKE NEWS

The Posard-Felix Shakeup Continues Again...........

That Was Correct on Tonight's Ride Awake to be aired late at night your off-screen host Mr. Bill Seely plays Camile Posard's When You Think About Me (Carlsbad Lancerettes '12 SV Hip Hop) and Jordan Felix's When I Get Close To You (Rosary Vocal Squad '12 SV Pom) to be heard on the following racers

Brad Keselowski - "When You Think About Me"
Dale Earnhardt Jr. - "When I Get Close to You"

Well I Have a Feeling that someone is going to update to see who won in NASCAR, IndyCar and Formula 1 in this thread, but first i'm going to cover a state pageant that is run by Al & Gail Clark which is a prelim to the Miss USA and Miss Universe Pageant

Opening Number Song: "Ooh Ahh.. Just A Little Bit" (Gina G) - All 114 Contestants w/ Brittany Booker will sing together, Booker will sing solo on the first verse only with the 114 Miss Texas USA Contestants sing the remainder for next verse and then both after that.
Swimsuit Competion Song: "Hella Good" (No Doubt) - All Non-Semifinalists will perform this song then we get to the instrumental the swimsuit competition begins and after that the Semifinalists join the Non-Semifinalists to close out this competition
Halftime Production Number: "Girlfriend" (Avril Lavigne) - All 114 Contestants will perform with the Reigning Miss Texas USA Brittany Booker and a number of Competitors competing for the Miss Texas Teen USA Title which will be held in Houston on November to be streamed on the Web
Pre-Evening Gown Production Number: "Eyes Open" (Taylor Swift) - The Miss Texas Teen USA Girls will perform this song through out the parade along side the Miss Texas USA Girls who will also perform that song (Yes, The Last time the Miss Texas USA Girls performed in the Evening Gown Production Number is the 2008 Pageant in Laredo along side the Texas A&M University Singing Cadets)
Finale Number: "Call Me Maybe" (Carly Rae Jepsen) - First The Miss Texas Teen USA Ladies will perform the Finale Number with The First Version and after the 2nd Verse will be performed by All 114 Miss Texas USA Contestants they will join together after that verse.
First Walk Song: "Emotion" (Destiny's Child) - When a New Miss Texas USA Crowned and may take her first walk the entire Miss Texas USA Contestants along with the Miss Texas Teen USA Ladies will perform that song.

(Original Singer in Parenthesis)

Notes: The Opening Number & Halftime Production Numbers will be expected to have kicklines a tradition that happened in every Miss Texas USA Pageant since the 2011 Pageant which took place in August 2010 (won by Ana Rodriguez).

Outfits for the Production on the 2013 Miss Texas USA Pageant which will take place on Sunday
Opening Number: Colored Leotard with a Colored Shirt to match their leotard
Halftime Production Number: Miss Texas USA Contestants Will Wear a Bright Colored Leotard and Tan Pantyhose, Miss Texas Teen USA Contestants will wear Pastel Colored Leotards and Black Pantyhose.

More updates later on.

athleticsfan2kx

August 23rd, 2012, 10:08 PM

More Updates on this year's Miss Texas USA Pageant

As You Know Miss Texas USA will be broadcast on Syndication on Statewide TV as KTXA (Dallas, TX - Ch. 21/Ind.), KHOU (Houston, TX - Ch. 11/CBS), KSAT (San Antonio, TX - Ch. 12/ABC), KXAN (Austin, TX - Ch. 36/NBC) and KWES (Midland, TX - Ch. 9/NBC) are among the notable stations to pick up the Telecast and most of the stations that are televising the pageant will be in High-Definition, In Addition it will also be streamed online at pageantvision.com (Mostly if you lived outside of Texas), Al Clark (the executive producer of the pageant) said "This is our 3rd year that the pageant is televised in High-Definition, That means some stations are still airing in Standard-Definition that will make more ratings for it, and will increase a much better way to deal with it."

And Also: In The NFL

The Oakland Raiders are doing well in the Preseason in the first game they lost to Dallas 3-0, and in the second game they lost to the Arizona Firebirds 31-27, now this week they are going to take on the Detroit Lions on Saturday at O.co Coliseum.

athleticsfan2kx

September 2nd, 2012, 03:49 PM

The Miss Texas USA Report - August 25, 2012

After the Swimsuit Preview and Preliminary Competition, A Dress Rehearsal Production for the Live Telecast took place and is webcasted live as we prepare for Sunday's Live Telecast which will be also simulcasted on the internet for free at www.pageantvision.com (http://www.pageantvision.com) now taken over by ustream, and yes, the rehearsal which took place last night is not Televised but it's only streamed on the web and is attended by about 1,100 people, Monica Ibarra (who competed in the 2012 Miss Laredo Teen Pageant) ever had a good singing voice "Well that was good i made my dancing practice, before we get ready for Sunday's Telecast", Stephanie Rivas (who is currently held the title of Miss El Paso Teen USA) said "Well my leotard is ready and i'm ready to dance and sing, but although we could had the singing cadets, but it's only the teen girls", and for Tahnae Tarkenton she finished her opening number practice and said "Well it feels like i'm on the Drill Team for my alma mater, again.", The Miss Texas USA Pageant will be televised tomorrow from Corpus Christi on August 26th on pageantvision.com (for free) and on the following stations at 8-10 PM CT

The 2013 Miss Texas USA Pageant is underway from the American Bank Center at Corpus Christi, TX and we just begun with the Opening Number of this pageant as 114 Girls in Leotards (provided by American Apparel) performing the Opening Number Song as All 114 Contestants w/ Brittany Booker will sing together to Gina G.'s Just A Little Bit complete with one word... Kicklines after that the girls introduce themselves after Brittany leaves the stage (BTW, the pageant is televised in High Definition)

Now Let's Give a Run Down of what the speaking voice in the Delegate Intros went after the Opening Number (when they had their singing voices): Megan McAnelly (Central Texas), Peyton Saverance (Houston), Erin Kay (Kemah), Jordan Schultz* (Plano), Rachel Prochnow (Waco), Lauren Guzman (North Laredo)

*Soon To be a Surprise Winner in Asterisks

After the Opening Number, The Delegate Introductions and a Commercial Break, Crystle Stewart and Mandy Jaye Jeffries made an entrance to host this pageant and then the top 15 is revealed

Then the Swimsuit Competition followed as All Non-Semifinalists (incl. Kathryn Dunn and Brittany Booker) performed No Doubt's Hella Good to open the Swimsuit Competition, Here's Top 5 Ranking for this Swimsuit Competition

But Halftime is Coming as a Number of Miss Texas Teen USA Contestants are performing along side the Miss Texas USA Contestants which will they are wearing the SAME opening number costume, stay tuned and see what happens.

athleticsfan2kx

September 2nd, 2012, 10:00 PM

Now It's Halftime as the song "Girlfriend" being played and it is song by 114 Miss Texas USA Girls along with A Bunch of Miss Texas Teen USA Contestants including Logan Lester [Houston], Stephanie Rivas [El Paso], Brooklynne Young [Dallas] as they are donned as they same as the outfits as the Miss Texas USA Pageant, Christine Friedel-MacDonald (one of our judges in the pageant) commented "Wow, The Leotards are great i previously wore it in the 1994 Miss Texas USA Pageant when were here, and I later won the crown".

And Yes, that Halftime Production Number had capped off with high kick lines followed by splits (Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders eat your heart out)

Now it's the Evening Gown Production as the TX Teen Girls sing "Eyes Open" while the Non-Finalists competing for TX USA paraded in gowns of their own choosing while singing before the start of the evening gown competition began.

As they are getting ready to have final question, but it's Kandace is doing the interviews on the top 5 as they prepare for the final question but we had a guest appearance his name is Albert Soliz he wants to do the final question an so he did

After the Conclusion of the Final Question it's finale number time as all 114 Miss Texas USA Contestants along with a number of Miss Texas Teen USA Contestants singing to Carly Rae Jepsen's Call Me Maybe (A Nice good hit in 2012 so far), but let's hope who will take the crown as we see who won.

And So Miss North Texas, Alexandria Nugent is Miss Texas USA for 2013 as she takes her first walk, as for the 4th Runner Up Lauren Guzman (who is Miss Texas Teen USA 2008), she led the girls by singing Destiny Child's Devotion along with the other Miss Texas USA Contestants (including Falcon, Calderon and Schultz) along with the Miss Texas Teen USA Ladies to wrap up this Televised event as well as playing "Just A Little Bit" originally by Gina G sung by the girls which is recorded in the Closing Credits of this pageant.

My 2013 Miss Texas USA Pageant report is over, now i hope i could still cover Pageants from the Miss USA System in this Alt. Formula 1 History Thread, but yeah we need to get NASCAR left so please reply here if you want to update to see who won this week (at Darlington), reply here.

Polesitter Denny Hamlin led the opening 7 laps, Ricky Carmichael took the point at lap 8 before Hamlin retook the led on lap 11.

Lap 14 saw the first yellow when Jeremy Mayfield got together with David Reutimann and Jennifer Jo Cobb. On the lap 18 restart Carlos Pardo running third dives into turn one 3 wide taking the led from Hamlin and Carmichael. Lap 28 Dale Earnhardt Jr. who started 17 takes the lap from Pardo. Jr. quickly pull out to a 5 second over Pardo and Hamlin.

Jr. led until the Lap 45 competition yellow. Hamlin won the race off pit road over Jr. and Pardo. Carl Edwards is now 4th after starting 20th. On the restart Cole Whitt gets together with Andy Lally. Lap 53 Jr. retakes the led from Hamlin. Jr. quickly pull out to a 5 second again but he not fastest car on the track Adam Petty is running in 7th after starting 28th.

Lap 82 Brian Keselowski cuts an tire and hits the wall hard. He was shaken up but not hurt. The Lap 86 restart saw Adam Petty take the point from Jr. The next 50 laps would relatively quiet with both Petty and Jr. jumping out to a huge led.

Lap 138 Yellow flag The caution is out for rain. Lap 140 The leaders are on pit road. Marcos Ambrose stayed on the track to lead a lap. Lap 141 Ambrose makes his pit shop. Lap 152 Red Flag: Rain.

Lap 155 Green Flag Adam Petty, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Denny Hamlin, Jimmie Johnson and Carlos Pardo are the leaders. Lap 163 Jimmie Johnson takes led from Petty. Lap 170 Jr. back to tenth. Lap 180 Jr. is back up to eighth his car is coming back to him.

Lap 220 Johnson retakes the led from Pardo. Lap 235 Johnson opens 5 second over Pardo and Petty. Lap 241 Jr. up to 3rd. Lap 245 Petty's car looks to be falling off back to 7th place. Lap 251 Jr. to 2nd.

Lap 371 Yellow flag Matt Kenseth spins running 8th. Carlos Pardo takes two tires wins the race off pit road. Lap 287 Pardo leads over Petty by second and half but was closing. 3 laps to go Pardo and Petty are running side-by-side coming to the line. Petty takes the lead in 3 turn 2 laps to go but Pardo is not done he moves Petty up the race track in 2 turn take it back. White flag Pardo holds Petty off for his first win of the season his second of this career.

And i hope on a Future Post someone can post more about the Coach K Collection by Nike, in this thread (Hint: It's Not going to be me!)

athleticsfan2kx

September 22nd, 2012, 06:17 AM

Ride Awake Notes: El Rancho Song & Dance past and present

To Say the Least the El Rancho Song & Dance Vocal Drill Team is a spinoff of the El Rancho Choraleers from El Rancho High School and performs in Football Games, Baseball Games, Basketball Games, Soccer Games, etc. and others, but the Vocal Drill Team came well in 2012.

Dancing In The Street (2002) (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PS1Hh9beD9I)
First Appearance: March 13, 2002 (Jeff Gordon - #24 Dupont Chevrolet)
Video Game Appearances: NASCAR Thunder 2003 (Also the main title song in which they replace the drill teams name in the lyrics for the games title (for the first 2) and "EA Sports, It's In The Game" for the last one)

Jasmine's Double Duty performance is heard on your car is on ESPN Right?

Well this question is Rhetorical but well you don't, North Hollywood High Royal Regiment Singer Captain Jasmine Ventenilla appeared not only on Ride Awake (airing on ESPN2 and ESPN Classic) but also on a LA Version of Ride Awake airing on PBS Station KLCS focusing on a film of Streets of Highways in the Los Angeles Area called "Night Drive LA" accompanied by Music performed by Vocal Drill Teams from High Schools of the Los Angeles Unified School District, "Well this is a great experience i've ever had", Jasmine said "Well i'm looking forward to appear on Ride Awake tonight so count me in!", Ventenilla will appear as she will sing in a Ride Awake/Night Drive LA Theme to be performed by her vocal drill team which salutes the music of Jessica Simpson.

Now You Know so Jasmine Ventenilla's voice could be heard on the In-Car of Tonight's Ride Awake driven by Jamie McMurray which will on ESPN2 and ESPN Classic.

TheMann

January 18th, 2013, 05:34 AM

2012 was quite a year in professional motorsports, and it was no more than in the Indycar series, as it turned into a roller-coaster of a season that saw the 29-race schedule land no less than thirteen different winners, though a mean person would say that the victories by Adrian Fernandez at Bridgehampton and Pippa Mann's victory at Kentucky, both of which came about as a result of accidents, were flukes. But despite all of that, the 2012 Indycar series was a wild ride, where the champ only won two races and the guy who finished third in the points won the most races of the season with five.

It was perhaps no surprise that the most consistent guy in the series finally got his dues, but few begrudged the championship that Memo Gidley, after fourteen years of trying, finally got for himself - indeed, the fact that it was Gidley who took home the Indycar title is perhaps a symbol of how being a nice guy pays off. It was also a fight for the ages between the guys with many years of experience under their belt, with Gidley, Tony Stewart, Jacques Villeneuve, Jimmy Vasser and Dario Franchitti proudly carrying that flag, against the young and fast, led by the guy who finished second, Canada's Robert Wickens, and the guy who finished third, the unstoppable A.J. Allmendinger. Gidley and Wickens came first and second by scoring in the points regularly - Gidley got 21 points-paying finishes, Wickens 20 - and by not making mistakes in a rush to score wins, as several guys both young and old did in 2012. Indeed, Allmendinger and his old mentor Paul Tracy set the records for lead-footed, hell-or-glory racing, with seven wins between the two but also no less than 32 wrecked cars.

Through 2012, there was a variety of wild events, awesome battles, massive crashes, crazy driving and enough action both on and off the track to make sure that the fanatics were as satisfied as could be, even if at times things got way, way out of hand. Just to give a few examples of the craziness, here are some of the wild happenings....

This Ain't a Demolition Derby, Paul
Paul Tracy just about got himself suspended after the lunacy at the race at Long Beach, where he punted off no less than four drivers in either too aggressive position defenses or rather hopeless pass attempts. Three times may have been a charm, but the fourth wasn't, as he tangled with Jacques Villeneuve and ended his race with six laps to go. Jacques sat out the round at Miller Park as a result of the incident and his subsequent fist-fight with Tracy.

Grandpa Would Be Proud
A rapidly-deflating rear tire didn't bother A.J. Foyt IV at Miller Park, though A.J. clearly didn't think about potential suspension damage and back off, but rather running almost an entire lap with a flat right rear and swinging the tail like a sprint car the whole time. The TV cameras saw Super Tex with a great big grin on his face as his son got the car back to the pits - leave it to Foyt to be smiling at his son driving an Indycar like that.

No Hormone Jokes, Fellas
A get-together between Ariel Hill and Pippa Mann during qualifying at Detroit wasn't something that was a joke for either driver, as Mann's tripping over Hill's lap car saw both drivers get into an argument in their pitlane that ended with Mann slapping Hill, and Ariel promptly jumping the pit wall and swinging back. After the fight, Hill loudly growled "She should be lucky I'm in a good mood today, or I'd slap that b***h a f****** lot harder than that."

Yeah, it's good to start at the front, but did you really want it THAT badly?
Leave it to a sprint car-raised guy to really go for it on a wide-open track and spend more time sideways than straight....and end a lap that would have started him in the first two rows in the fence. That's what happened to Tony Renna in qualifying at Edmonton. Paul Menard wasn't pleased, but even he had to admit "He was actually up and driving the thing." Teammate Sebastien Saveedra joked about it: "He didn't do anything. The Turn Eleven wall was his enemy."

Alright, We Can Say Luck Hasn't Been on Your Side Now
After a transmission failure dropped Casey Mears out of the lead at Surfers Paradise and a pileup started by Jacques Villeneuve and Steven Wallace took him out of the front pack at Las Vegas, Casey Mears lamented about his luck, only to be comforted by Jack Arute in the pits after his accident, saying that "You left your bad luck with your snake eyes in Vegas." But Mears would suffer two more mechanical failures while near the front, and after a last-lap accident with David Brabham and Kurt Busch at Bridgehampton handed the win to Adrian Fernandez, Mears said to Arute "No, I think I'm just f****** jinxed this year." It didn't even end there, as a blown front tire tossed him out of the race at Texas....but Casey finished off the year at California Speedway where he led no less than 171 of 250 laps and was the class of the field all day.

Just Shut Up, Please
Michael Andretti has a habit of speaking his mind, but this wound up starting him in trouble through the 2012 season. Gloating over Ashley Taws' performances got so ugly that Ana Beatriz loudly commented to Derek Daly "Can you please get Michael to shut up?" and his commenting at Mexico City after Takuma Sato tangled with Paul Tracy "He got what that village idiot so richly deserves" started to annoy people, but after Buddy Rice led J.R. Hildebrand and Ashley across the line in a 1-2-3 sweep at Miller Park did Michael's gloating get awful. By the end of the season, even the television crew was getting sick of Michael's attitude.

New Underwear Required, Please
The pileup on lap 115 of the Ceasar's Palace Las Vegas 500 was one hell of a mess, caused when Jacques Villeneuve jumped to the right as he came through Turn Two and crashed into Steven Wallace, but the scariest part of this was Alex Gurney's triple backflip in the middle of the melee....and his teammate, Dan Wheldon, somehow getting through the middle of the wreck by driving under his teammate's car as it flew through the air. Wheldon got his car back to the pits to change a flat tire, but commented on the radio after hearing that Alex was alright "Can somebody ask Dan [Gurney] to get a couple new pairs of Jockeys for me?"

Well, One Can't Fault Him for Always Looking for a Positive
David Brabham gets this award for humility after his oil pump spectacularly failed coming of Turn Four in the Indianapolis 500, creating a smoke cloud that ran the length of the front straightaway, when he commented after getting out of the car "The fans don't have to worry about mosquitoes for a while, at least."

athleticsfan2kx

January 18th, 2013, 05:38 AM

2012 was quite a year in professional motorsports, and it was no more than in the Indycar series, as it turned into a roller-coaster of a season that saw the 29-race schedule land no less than thirteen different winners, though a mean person would say that the victories by Adrian Fernandez at Bridgehampton and Pippa Mann's victory at Kentucky, both of which came about as a result of accidents, were flukes. But despite all of that, the 2012 Indycar series was a wild ride, where the champ only won two races and the guy who finished third in the points won the most races of the season with five.

It was perhaps no surprise that the most consistent guy in the series finally got his dues, but few begrudged the championship that Memo Gidley, after fourteen years of trying, finally got for himself - indeed, the fact that it was Gidley who took home the Indycar title is perhaps a symbol of how being a nice guy pays off. It was also a fight for the ages between the guys with many years of experience under their belt, with Gidley, Tony Stewart, Jacques Villeneuve, Jimmy Vasser and Dario Franchitti proudly carrying that flag, against the young and fast, led by the guy who finished second, Canada's Robert Wickens, and the guy who finished third, the unstoppable A.J. Allmendinger. Gidley and Wickens came first and second by scoring in the points regularly - Gidley got 21 points-paying finishes, Wickens 20 - and by not making mistakes in a rush to score wins, as several guys both young and old did in 2012. Indeed, Allmendinger and his old mentor Paul Tracy set the records for lead-footed, hell-or-glory racing, with seven wins between the two but also no less than 32 wrecked cars.

Through 2012, there was a variety of wild events, awesome battles, massive crashes, crazy driving and enough action both on and off the track to make sure that the fanatics were as satisfied as could be, even if at times things got way, way out of hand. Just to give a few examples of the craziness, here are some of the wild happenings....

This Ain't a Demolition Derby, Paul
Paul Tracy just about got himself suspended after the lunacy at the race at Long Beach, where he punted off no less than four drivers in either too aggressive position defenses or rather hopeless pass attempts. Three times may have been a charm, but the fourth wasn't, as he tangled with Jacques Villeneuve and ended his race with six laps to go. Jacques sat out the round at Miller Park as a result of the incident and his subsequent fist-fight with Tracy.

Grandpa Would Be Proud
A rapidly-deflating rear tire didn't bother A.J. Foyt IV at Miller Park, though A.J. clearly didn't think about potential suspension damage and back off, but rather running almost an entire lap with a flat right rear and swinging the tail like a sprint car the whole time. The TV cameras saw Super Tex with a great big grin on his face as his son got the car back to the pits - leave it to Foyt to be smiling at his son driving an Indycar like that.

No Hormone Jokes, Fellas
A get-together between Ariel Hill and Pippa Mann during qualifying at Detroit wasn't something that was a joke for either driver, as Mann's tripping over Hill's lap car saw both drivers get into an argument in their pitlane that ended with Mann slapping Hill, and Ariel promptly jumping the pit wall and swinging back. After the fight, Hill loudly growled "She should be lucky I'm in a good mood today, or I'd slap that b***h a f****** lot harder than that."

Yeah, it's good to start at the front, but did you really want it THAT badly?
Leave it to a sprint car-raised guy to really go for it on a wide-open track and spend more time sideways than straight....and end a lap that would have started him in the first two rows in the fence. That's what happened to Tony Renna in qualifying at Edmonton. Paul Menard wasn't pleased, but even he had to admit "He was actually up and driving the thing." Teammate Sebastien Saveedra joked about it: "He didn't do anything. The Turn Eleven wall was his enemy."

Alright, We Can Say Luck Hasn't Been on Your Side Now
After a transmission failure dropped Casey Mears out of the lead at Surfers Paradise and a pileup started by Jacques Villeneuve and Steven Wallace took him out of the front pack at Las Vegas, Casey Mears lamented about his luck, only to be comforted by Jack Arute in the pits after his accident, saying that "You left your bad luck with your snake eyes in Vegas." But Mears would suffer two more mechanical failures while near the front, and after a last-lap accident with David Brabham and Kurt Busch at Bridgehampton handed the win to Adrian Fernandez, Mears said to Arute "No, I think I'm just f****** jinxed this year." It didn't even end there, as a blown front tire tossed him out of the race at Texas....but Casey finished off the year at California Speedway where he led no less than 171 of 250 laps and was the class of the field all day.

Just Shut Up, Please
Michael Andretti has a habit of speaking his mind, but this wound up starting him in trouble through the 2012 season. Gloating over Ashley Taws' performances got so ugly that Ana Beatriz loudly commented to Derek Daly "Can you please get Michael to shut up?" and his commenting at Mexico City after Takuma Sato tangled with Paul Tracy "He got what that village idiot so richly deserves" started to annoy people, but after Buddy Rice led J.R. Hildebrand and Ashley across the line in a 1-2-3 sweep at Miller Park did Michael's gloating get awful. By the end of the season, even the television crew was getting sick of Michael's attitude.

New Underwear Required, Please
The pileup on lap 115 of the Ceasar's Palace Las Vegas 500 was one hell of a mess, caused when Jacques Villeneuve jumped to the right as he came through Turn Two and crashed into Steven Wallace, but the scariest part of this was Alex Gurney's triple backflip in the middle of the melee....and his teammate, Dan Wheldon, somehow getting through the middle of the wreck by driving under his teammate's car as it flew through the air. Wheldon got his car back to the pits to change a flat tire, but commented on the radio after hearing that Alex was alright "Can somebody ask Dan [Gurney] to get a couple new pairs of Jockeys for me?"

Well, One Can't Fault Him for Always Looking for a Positive
David Brabham gets this award for humility after his oil pump spectacularly failed coming of Turn Four in the Indianapolis 500, creating a smoke cloud that ran the length of the front straightaway, when he commented after getting out of the car "The fans don't have to worry about mosquitoes for a while, at least."

TheMann Good Work, you can cover IndyCars in my Days of Thunder thread!

TheMann

January 18th, 2013, 08:30 PM

The 2012 IMSA American Sportscar Championship, the 46th season of the famed IMSA series, was no less of an event than most had been in times past, for a variety of reasons, though the record-setting grid - 39 cars were aiming for the Prototype championships and 49 were gunning for Grand Touring Car glory - made for headaches at times and massive problems with accidents involving backmarkers, and it was hard to imagine a field of 81 cars taking the green flag at a track like Laguna Seca, but that's what happened in the final race of 2012.

The series comprised of 18 races, as well as the 24 Hours of Le Mans, with seven of the series' events (Daytona, Sebring, Petit Le Mans, Portrero de los Funes, Sao Paulo, Kyalami and Silverstone) also counting for points in World Sportscar Championship. Indeed, huge grid were a fact of life for many events - 107 cars started the Tourist Trophy, showing the amount of interest and funding that has become such a big deal in the series. (It should be noted that of those 107, only 49 finished the 1000-kilometer race at Silverstone.) The five classes of cars meant that the racing was close, tough and wild at pretty much all times, with every class having multiple cars that could win their class.

All of the race wins were fought between the Prototype 1 category and Prototype GT category cars, with Chrysler, Ford-Panoz, Toyota, Peugeot and BMW's factory P1 entrants facing off against the factory Corvette, Porsche and Audi efforts in P-GT. The factory teams claimed every race except one, that one loss coming at the hands of Cytosport's Lola-Aston Martin at VIR thanks to a spectacular drive by Bruno Spengler in the last 90 minutes. The Chrysler SuperPatriots were the top dogs in 2012, though the Ford Panoz racers made them work every inch of the way for it, Don Panoz's wicked front-engine chassis combined with Ford EcoBoost power making a real rival to the roaring Chryslers, who left most everyone else behind at fast tracks - Road America, Bridgehampton and Mosport saw races where the final order was never in doubt, and a broken gearbox and a tangle with one of the Prodrive Ferrari 599s left the Chrysler crews watching the Cytosport win. The Corvette and Porsche efforts were capable of running with the big guys at speed - Porsche's one overall win came after a lead-footed marathon drive by Johannes van Overbeek at Baltimore - but the extra weight of the P-GT cars and the straight-line speed of the Chrysler and Peugeot efforts meant that the P-GT cars found themselves racing for top-fives rather than wins. Corvette won one race (Dallas) finished an amazing second at Daytona and had two more third-place finishes (Mosport and Kyalami), but they didn't have the year they hoped for - though consistent driving by the Corvette crews allowed them to beat out the Porsches for the P-GT title. In Prototype 2, where Porsche had been on top for years, 2012 saw the Alex Job and Schumacher teams fighting for the category with the shockingly-good Radical SR9 of Libra Racing (helped along on several occasions by Indycar stars Sarah Fisher and Alex Gurney) and the Zyteks of Autocon Motorsport and Intersport Racing, the latter not missing a beat despite the massive crash in Argentina that left team owner Jon Field in a hospital for a month. The P2 racers could keep the pace and run well most of the time, though they had not the horsepower to keep up with the P1 and P-GT racers. (Despite this, Alex Gurney and Austin Snader booted the Libra Radical to a stunning fourth overall in the Prototype race at Mid-Ohio, proving that a twisty track like Mid-Ohio can be a great equalizer.) The #98 Schumacher Racing Porsche RS Spyder held on to the Prototype 2 title, though that was only because of a rare Nissan engine failure in the Libra car while they were leading the category at Laguna Seca and drivetrain and electrical failures on the Autocon Zytek-Nissan forced them out of the races at Road Atlanta and Kyalami.

If anything, the GT category was more hard-fought still. GT1 saw Ferrari, Lamborghini and Nissan slugging it out, and while Corvette's move into P-GT meant no factory cars there, the Corvette Owners' Club entered two Corvette ZR1.R2s to run as well. Team Lexus also entered, but the LFA GT's undoubted pace was not matched up with reliability and they frequently foudn themselves behind. Lamborghini, courtesy of three race wins by the West Yokohama team, was competitive but not enough so to beat down the Ferrari and Nissan juggernauts, the technologically-state-of-the-art turbocharged GT-R taking on Ferrari's awesome 599 Fiorano GTS. Despite eight class wins - three of those by Ayrton Senna's racing for a better world team in their only three starts at Daytona, Sao Paulo and Petit Le Mans - Nissan lost the title chase to Prodrive's mighty Ferraris. The Corvettes proved to be solid runners, and a little help from Ron Fellows and Phillipe Letourneau saw the Owners Club Corvette come out with the GT race win at Mosport, but they weren't able to always top Ferrari, Nissan and Lamborghini.

Grand Touring 2 may well be the slowest of the five classes of cars in the IMSA championship, but its always one of the most hard-fought simply because the GT rules make it that way, and with both manufacturers and enterprising race teams forever working to build a better race car, it's always a place to see machinery - and with Porsche, Ferrari, BMW, Corvette, Viper, Cadillac, Jaguar, Audi, Aston Martin, Mosler, Ford and Lotus all in the fight, it was sure to make for chaos at times - and that didn't prove to be wrong. Extreme Speed and Pacific Coast Motorsports sought to make Ferrari dominate the GT categories, and they got plenty of help from Prodrive to help make that fact a reality, but they had Porsche intent on holding on to their 2011 title and equally-dedicated efforts by BMW and Jaguar, the latter in the hands of Paul Gentilozzi's Rocketsports team, looking to make up their once-soiled reputation. Saleen-Allen Speedlabs got lots of attention just because of the fact that famed actor Tim Allen was on the driving strength for two-thirds of the season (that ended after Tim had a huge crash at Mosport and got a broken leg as a result), and the big ponycar Mustangs they had were known for towering over cars like the Lotus Evora GTE and Mosler MT900 which were much smaller in size. The most wins of the season went to Porsche, who were able - by two points - to hang on to the GT2 title, those two lost points undoubtedly the result of the pitstop miscue at Indianapolis that cost Guy Cosmo, Ed Brown and Scott Sharp the GT2 win there. The Flying Lizard Porsche team's pairing of Seth Neiman and Darren Law was able to come home with the GT2 driver's title, sharing it between the two.